Dancing around the World

A little more video fun but no singing this time. This is Matt. He travels the world and speaks the international language of, well, dance. It's an amazing phenomenon. He's been written up by the NY Times and featured on many a morning show & cable news segment about his videos. I find the videos touching and wish more Americans could experience the joy and appreciation that international travel imparts. It might change some of the ignorance one encounters in people who have never left this country. I don't know Matt well but he did some contract work a few years ago for the team I work for and his girlfriend currently works for the company Ken does. Small world.

Check it out:


HERE is his website. Go Matt!

More about the Coast Trip

The trip to the coast was a blend of the old and new. Since our grandparents used to make an annual event of going to Seaside when we where young, being there with my cousin, brother & mom seemed quite familiar. But as I've gotten older, trips to the beach are now about getting away from things and relaxing as opposed to trips in my youth which were about thrill-seeking and keeping busy at all times.

Mom and Cindy rented a good sized house with an amazing view of the Manzanita Beach. It was situated on top of a cliff that afforded spectacular views but more difficult beach access. Also in Manzanita there is a homemade pie shop. Have you ever seen such a thing? It's right off 101 as you come into Manzanita. Unbelievable homemade pies with the fresh fruits of the area and season. We had 2 nights of it. So good.

There was no shortage of food and each person, or couple set, took turns cooking the major meals. In the evenings we played games or watched a DVD. The weather was incredible--especially for the Oregon Coast with 4 days of sustained sun and higher temps. But poor Austin did not have his own bedroom. He had to sleep in the living room area on his choice of a sofa or a hide-a-bed. Next time, and Mom's made it clear that the success of this trip signals a new annual tradition, they'll shoot for enough bedrooms for everyone.

I notice as I get older, my tolerance for "foreign" beds is getting smaller and smaller. This trip was no exception. As we read the notes left by other visitors, bed quality was the number one complaint. I remember when all I needed was a blanket & pillow and I could set up camp on a floor anywhere. Long gone are those days.

Good food, great company, awesome memories. Until next year...

Cindy took many good shots during our stay at the beach.
(In fact, she has a photo exhibition about Myanmar Burma starting on August 1st through 31st at Winestock, a Wine bar in Oregon City.)

But here is my most favorite of her pics from the Coast trip:



Does it make you laugh as it makes me laugh? Austin clearly has a new take on those picture-opp head cut-outs. Muy bueno.

Some others of Cindy's...

Family Vacations Rule

These are my favorites out of my pictures from a 4-day family trip at the Oregon Coast last week. The weather was warm and the company was great. I'll write more about the trip when I get Cindy's pics up, because she got some good ones. In the meantime, I need to go to bed.

Week in the East

Lest we forget that prior to the weddings, Ken and I were on the East Coast seeing family and friends. Ken was over initally for a conference in Baltimore, MD then I joined him at the end of the week. Below you will see parts of our whirlwind visit.



Ken's young nephews, Sam & Ryan were staying with Ken's folks since their parents were on a cruise. We had a great time with them and were delighted at how smart and good natured they were. We played board games, went tubing out on the boat, played video games, watched Sponge Bob Square Pants, caught fireflies and ate things we shouldn't have. Dave came and visited us in Onancock too.
The morning we left to go back to Baltimore, Ken created a game for the boys that involved written clues and hidden "treasure." It was very much like what my parents used to do for us on Easter. They would create a series of clues that lead to one another, with the ultimate clue leading to a basket of goodies. In this case, the boys went from clue to clue solving word or visual puzzles that Ken had made and the ultimate prize was something any kid can use: $4 each. But they seemed to really get into it and the clues were designed so that the brothers ages 8 & 10 had to work together to solve the problems. It was fun watching them figuring things out. We were told by Ken's mom that the morning after, the boys woke up and asked her if she had another treasure hunt for them planned. Sorry guys.


Dan-o and Baby Hannah

Also during our visit we saw our good friends the Vaslows, who recently moved from here to Maryland to be closer to their families now that they have Hannah. It was great to see them since the last time was in April.



We also had lunch and hung out in Baltimore's Fells Point with Krim, Ken's artist friend. Krim is such a character as you can probably tell from the photos. He had great stories and a unique perspective that is honest and refreshing.



As blogged earlier, we celebrated our 3rd anniversary over there. Ken picked out this very picturesque B&B for us to stay at in the Greenspring Valley of Maryland, near Baltimore. This house has a great deal of history in terms of the various owners and refurbishments that have been done to it. It was a lovely overnight and the swing was so picture perfect.

Our 3rd Anniversary @ Gramercy Mansion



Ken rocks the swing @ Gramercy Mansion















In addition to all this, we saw Ken's Uncle Jack & Aunt Chris, spent quality time with Ken's Mom & Step-dad, had lunch with Aunt Mary in Washington DC, saw his brother's new house and most importantly Ken managed to keep up on his running schedule despite the constant temptation of ice cream and dounuts. I am always delighted to see the people, eat pulled pork BBQ and marvel at fireflies. Despite the fact, I lament about the mosquitos & humidity. Ah, summer on the East Coast.

Jive Turkeez

Ken and I braved the highways on Sunday (lots of cops out checking speeds) for a quick getaway to a sleepy town called La Conner. It is best known for the annual Tulip Festival that happens in April. The overnight was a welcome break for us and the Skagit Valley is an amazing visage to behold. The miles of rolling farmland create such an idyllic landscape which stretch out as far as the eye can see. It really helps clear the mind and calm the soul--if I may be so cliche.

View Larger Map

Rainbow Bridge in La Conner

And what getaway would be complete without some wildlife interaction? Did you know that LARGE wild turkeys roam the town of La Conner and can be found trolling around residents' yards? I couldn't get over their intimidating size. Ken kept wanting to get near them and make friends but I advised a healthy distance. Did not want either of us on the business end of those beaks or talons.

Ken tries to befriend a jive turkey.

Arid-zona

Friday, I flew to Arizona where I had the privilege to spend this past weekend with my grade school friend Heather for her first Mother’s Day. It was so much fun to be with her and her family. And it was a weekend full of firsts...
Little Ethan likes to get up each morning at 5:30am but I had to stay up on Friday night to watch Battlestar Galactica since they have extended cable in their house. I don't usually sleep well in strange places and when you combine that with an early wake up, well extreme measures are necessary. So for the first time, we visited Starbucks twice in the same day for caffinated beverages. I don't usually drink coffee or caffinated beverages so you can see why this is just crazy insane.
Also on Saturday, we went to the Arizona Science Center--a first for everyone involved--to fill our brains with knowledge and even learned about the Grand Canyon during the 3D Imax movie. (That was so killer, btw.) Daric performed a number of his original songs and Ethan showed us how he is full of "wisdom"--which in their house is another word for poop. I saw many cactuses blooming which is the first time I've ever seen that as well.



But it was 95-flipping-degrees when I left Phoenix on Sunday. While most people devine that warm sunny weather (including my husband), I am content with 50 degrees & overcast. I think you have more options to get warmer then to stay cooler. Plus I become pretty much worthless when the outside temp gets to 75 degrees or so.

But it was a lovely getaway with lovely people and I am so delighted to become acquainted with Ethan. What sweet little guy.

Holiday Traveling -- as you might expect

Ken and I traveled across the country to Virginia this Thanksgiving to spend it with the fine people of the Moore-Richardson-Shannahan clans. But I dreaded traveling for Thanksgiving because air travel is already so much fun during the rest of the year. The terminal in which we landed at Dulles was exactly how I imagined traveling at this time of year: loud, hectic and lots of bodies but our flights were all on time. Typically we fly on Alaska Airlines but this time we took United, an airline that evidently doesn't settle for 2 hour delays. We even boarded early on our connection out of DC to Norfolk. (I guess this is how the grown-up airlines do it.)

But on our initial leg from Seattle to DC, we sat in steerage (economy) and wedged ourselves into spaces that even a petite person would find small and just our luck, we ended up next to a plump mother with a 2-year-old child sitting on her lap. You should also know, she didn't bring one toy or book to occupy him with so he did was came naturally and threw the safety card around, grabbed for Ken's laptop, slammed the tray table closed repeatedly and when unhappy screamed at the top of his lungs. Thankfully, he slept for an hour or so and good that he did because I was in the middle seat next to them and having a really hard time keeping my cool. Of course she was saving herself at least $600 by having him on her lap. Those airlines--they get you. Ken and I talked about it and decided that coming out for Christmas allows more leeway and not everyone is flying the very same days to and from. I think that is what we will do going forward. Not that this Thanksgiving wasn't awesome. But more on that later.

Another thing about our flight I had a hard time with was the in-flight entertainment they showed. The first movie was called "Hot Rod" with the SNL Dick in a Box guy. Without sound, it looked stupid so I can only imagine. But it was appropriate for a Thankgiving crowd which included lots of kids. But the next movie was called "Shooter" with Mark Walberg. As you can imagine from the title, it contained lots and lots of gun violence. It was about a sniper in the military who gets strong-armed by government agents to assassinate a high powered official. I derived this without sound as well. I don't understand how United would have made such choice during flights with lots of children on them. Why couldn't have played "Ratatouille" or "Princess Bride" or anything remotely family oriented? I know, I sound old and cranky. But really, as a captive and uncomfortably seated audience, couldn't you at least play something for us that was uplifting?

The Airlines are Definitely Sucking

The month of June has been unusually full of airline travel for the Moore-Sakai Household and likewise, it’s been unusually full of frustration. Everybody knows what a pain in the ass air travel is these days. If it’s not the abject humiliation of removing your shoes, displaying toiletries or being at the mercy of the TSA, you also have a good chance of being delayed due to mechanical issues or computer meltdowns or pilot problems.

Of course, no one wants to ride on a plane with mechanical issues--better to be safe than dead, right? But with life moving at the speed of the Internet and technology improving by leaps and bounds, how can this happen? Why are there so many “mechanical issues”? Is that a new code name for ineptitude and lack of preparation?

A sampling of our experiences:
(1) Our Return from Virginia: we were originally scheduled to fly from DC to Dallas to Seattle. But the American Airlines flight out of DC to Dallas was 2 hours delayed – “mechanical issues.” This would have caused us to miss our connection in Dallas so they scrapped our itinerary and re-routed us from DC to Chicago to Seattle. After a 2-hour wait in DC then a 5 hour layover in Chicago, a trip that was originally supposed to take 7 hours actually took 16.

(2) Ken’s Return from San Jose: Ken’s plane to bring him back to Seattle was enroute to San Jose but once airborne, the crew realized something was amiss and turned it back to Seattle. Again, “mechanical issues.” The mechanics worked on it and then the plane proceeded to San Jose but this delayed Ken by 4 hours, arriving home well after Midnight.

(3) Our Return from San Diego: We arrived at the airport only to find out our Alaska flight home was delayed 3 hours due to, you guessed it, “mechanical issues.”
When we did finally get on the plane, a flight attendant made the mistake of announcing to the cabin, “Please turn off your cell phones, we cannot push back from the gate until you do this. We’re already late…” A passenger four rows ahead of me piped up and yelled, “Because of you!”
(Once upon a time, every girl’s dream was to be a stewardess, wearing fabulous uniforms and jetting around the world. Now, being a flight attendant has all the glamour of a well-paid babysitter and requires the disposition of a cranky waitress.)

This is for the Baggage Handlers: You’re working just fast enough not to get fired but slow enough to piss everyone off, aren’t you? I don’t ever remember waiting so long for bags. I think it’s been averaging close to 40 minutes from the time we step off the plane. And they never come out on the carousel listed on the board. All that rushing down to baggage claim to get a prime spot at the conveyer belt--wasted.

Do you ever stop to think about your tray table? When do you think the last time yours was sanitized? We eat off of them, work off of them and sometimes put our faces down on them. But have you ever seen a cleaning crew take the time to wipe them off?

That’s just a little something to think about in the security line while you are keeping an eye on the bin with your laptop as you hurriedly kick off your shoes, hand your Preparation H or Vagisil cream to Johnny TSA as he makes you go through the metal detector again, high on the power afforded to him by paranoia, regulation and karma.

Happy travels!

San Diego Weekend

During our weekend in San Diego, not only did we get to spend some quality time with Ed, Ken’s oldest brother, we also got up close and personal with some residents of the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park.

Ed and a new friend.

There were several different photo tours to pick from but the one I chose for us was adults only, not just because they served alcohol, but the theme of the evening was reproduction. The tour focused on the efforts of the park to assist captive animals to breed. Parks and zoos trade animals back and forth to get resident animals to reproduce. There is a lot of work that goes into managing the genetic lines of animals kept at zoos to make sure they are diverse. But just like in humans, sometimes the males and females don’t hit it off and they have to try other matches.
According to our guide, the San Diego Zoo & Wild Animal Park trade around more animals than all the other zoos in America combined. With natural habitats shrinking, these parks seem to be the only way to ensure animals and humans can coexist. I’m saddened that these animals can’t be left alone by poachers and protected in their natural habitats but this is better than nothing and many species flourish under the vigilant eye of zoo keepers. When you think about it, what a life: these animals will be taken care of for the rest of their lives without fear of predation or poaching—and they can have all the sex they can handle.

What beautiful eyelashes you have....

Whatchu talkin' 'bout?

Why the long face?

Concert on the War Machine

I've been down in gorgeous San Diego the last 3 days attending the BREW 2007 Conference. By far, this has been the most well-orchestrated technical convention I've EVER been to. Every detail is planned, every need is attended to, every attendee is made to feel special and the parties---oh the parties.

Don't get me wrong, I have also sat in a number of the business sessions/panels and gleaned some useful information about various aspects of our industry. But it's the informal meetings and spontaneous introductions that add a flair to the whole thing. Qualcomm, the host of the event, knows this and created some pretty awesome opportunities for socializing.

The spectacular BREWfest Event on Thursday did not disappoint. Besides reserving the entire USS Midway, a decommissioned aircraft carrier docked in San Diego Bay,







we ate, drank and admired the San Diego skyline at sunset,



while listening to the Goo Goo Dolls perform.




I'm not the biggest fan in the world but I like some of their songs.
This is a part of their opening song and no one in the audience seems to know the words to it.



Some lucky folks won the chance to arrive at the event via helicopter. One thing I didn't realize from the hundreds of times I've seen helicopters on TV is that when it hovers, it's so damn windy every bit of dust, debris--anything not nailed down becomes airborne and you better have eye protection or just squeeze them shut.





Cocktail, anyone?



Now on to the relaxing part of the trip. Ken joined me here late Friday and we'll spend the rest of the weekend hanging with Ken's brother who lives in San Diego. Right now the brothers are off mountain biking so this seems like a good time for me to---go shopping.

East Coast Trip: Animal Pictures

A few random animal pics from our recent trip to Virginia:

Pooky the cat finds refuge in Ken's suitcase.

A Black snake the neighbor called Ken and Duke over to dispose of.



The neighbor's dog upon seeing the Black snake.

Crab-tastic

Pictures from this weekend's crab feast...

Mmmm!

Help me!

Making ice cream the old-fashioned way: with 2 pairs of clamp pliers and a bucket of rocksalt & ice. After the motorized churner broke down we took turns hand-turning the ice cream drum.

Duke rearranges the furniture.

Family resemblance?

An insane amount of crabs.

Ken has a chip on his shoulder.

Onancock Virginia & Tangier Island

Vacationing in Onancock, Virginia (where Ken's parents live) is like crossing over into the Land the Time Forgot--there is no need to wear a watch here. It's one of those folksy picture postcard small towns with tall leafy trees, grand homes, large sidewalks and a significant history dating back to the 1600's. Most everyone here waves to one another and the outside world seems far away. This little town has managed to keep its charm amid growing development and the recent approval to build of a Walmart nearby. If you mire yourself in the news of the world as I sometimes do, you forget that places like this still exist. Surely it is not without it's problems but it certainly lessens the weight of the world. We have a great time when we visit here. But I only have 2 summertime lamentations: the humidity and the bugs. I guess it doesn't help that I have an aversion to both sweating & itching.

******

But Ken and I have had some fun little excursions. Friday we ventured by boat to a Tangier Island in the Chesapeake Bay. Neighbors Russ & Anne were kind enough to take us.

We crossed very choppy water in the Bay.

That's Ken and his mom, Joyce. I sat up in the front since I was getting a little nauseous from the ride.

As you approach Tangier Island, you can see the water tower from far in the distance. It looks like giant white balloon. The only way to get to this island is by one's own boat, tourist ferry or helicopter. I was told they banned gas-powered vehicles on the island but once there we noticed a few gas-powered trucks & earth moving equipment. Mostly though, they use golf carts and bicycles to get around.

The industry of this island is crabbing. As we floated into the harbor, rows and rows of crab shacks lined the waterway and alongside them, rows and rows of crab pots.

For lunch, we had the best crab cakes EVER at a trailer-home-turned-diner on the island. We walked around a little bit but headed back soon after. It's a unique and rustic destination, but a rather serious and stark place due to it's dependence on the sea. A sea that is slowly rising and shrinking their land.

Greetings from the East Coast

Ken and I have been here on the East Coast since last Thursday visiting his friends and family. We've been on the move between Washington DC, Baltimore MD, Silver Springs MD, Frederick MD, Fredricksburg VA, Salisbury MD and now Onancock VA where his parents live. I'm so sick of being in the car.

But if you are going to be traveling this summer and it involves driving, here's something that does make the driving more enjoyable: a new gadget I call the "Marriage Saver" also known as the Garmin Street Pilot. You just type in your destination and a nice lady tells you (14+ languages, optional) when to turn and how far you have left to go. It's all based on GPS information that it gathers live via satellite. Last year we tried to navigate DC with a map & our wits and almost came to blows. But this year I insisted we opt for an GPS navigator in the rental car. Ken did one better and decided that we should just buy one instead. I love the Garmin.

(Cool Tugboat in the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, MD)

The weather for the most part has been um, all over the place: 92 degrees with god-awful humidity to 85 with a nice cool breeze. I hear Seattle is perfect right now. I'm so glad we're missing it. Of all the cardinal rules of living in Seattle, the biggest one is "never leave during the 4 months of weather you tolerate the other 8 dreary ones for."

(Check this out: The boat across for this one is the USS Constellation in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. It just shot off a cannon and the gunpowder blast creates a smoke ring. How neato is that?)

******

On Monday, we drove through Trappe MD and visited Dave & Carla, high school friends of Ken. We spent a delightful (but sweltering) afternoon at their farm. Ken got to ride a "blind" horse and be a horse to Katelynn, their daughter.

(Ken and Dove, the masked equus)

( Katelynn and her horsey)

(As artful as a horse's ass can be on a hot day.)

Coming up....Tomorrow is Corey's (our nephew) high school graduation, Friday we see the Pirates of the Caribbean 3 and Saturday is a Richardson (Ken's Mom's side) family reunion including a blue crab feast. It's going to be a packed weekend.

I really hope the weather stays non-humid---and that I stop getting migranes. I've had 2 in 2 days now. It could be heat, hormones, having icecream a record 3 times in one trip or the alignment of Jupiter & Mars, but for whatever is causing them, I'm putting them on notice-- no more this trip, okay?

Into the Rain Forest

Last weekend we ventured to Lake Quinault (not pictured in any of the blog photos--it's shy) on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State in the temperate rain forest. This is aptly named Lake Quinault Lodge where we stayed.

Here are the Vaslows readying for a sojourn into the rain forest. Dan took lots of pictures and Jill made sure we had plenty of snacks. It was an unexpectedly nice day and we couldn't believe we got so lucky!

Beware of Cougars in the Rain forest.

Ken finds out the trees are alive!

A 3-petalled forest flower captured with my new 7.1 mega pixel camera. Very nice!

Afternoon entertainment & snacks.

World's Tallest Sitka Spruce Tree (or second tallest, depending on who you ask). Ken is 6' tall so imagine being there...

Hanging out by the Sitka.

*******

Originally designed to be a multi-couple event, we found ourselves traveling to the temperate rain forest of Quinault with just our dear friends Dan & Jill--who are no strangers to shepherding us in the great outdoors. From the get-go, they turned out to be much more prepared--I mean they even remembered to bring hiking boots to the forest. (I don't even know what we were thinking.) Thankfully it was sunny and our tennis shoes sufficed.

The lake lapped the shore in a way I've never heard before. Unchallenged by mechanical noises and the human hubbub of a city, the lake asserted a boldness that I'd never considered a land-locked water body to possess. It was a lake to be taken seriously: still, deep, sapphire blue.

After dinner each night we played games. Pass the Pigs, a sort of "dice" game, tested our skill at "rolling pigs" and point-management. Also, I'm pleased to report that Jill and I cleaned up in 80's Trivia versus our husbands. But Catch Phrase generated the greatest gut-busting hysterics when I tried to say "Low Flying Planes" but all that came out was every other permutation: Plane Fly Low, Low Plane Fly, Fly Plane Low, etc.

All in all, a wonderful time in the woods with none of that messy camping business. Now that's a getaway.

Top 5 Details of our trip to Palm Springs

1. The Clown Car


This is Le Clown Car that carried Ken, Dad and me all over the Palm Springs area. Notice it's attention-grabbing color and PT cruiser-like styling. But Le Clown Car is really the Chevrolet HHR. I have always felt American cars lack subtlety and here is a shiny example.

2. Exercise

Averaging 14,000 steps per day, we hiked, played ping-pong and tennis as well as worked out in the gym. Our first hike in the mountains around Palm Springs resulted in us having to come down into a private fenced yard which inspired Ken and me to jump the fence. We later found out that the gate wasn't finished so we could have walked around.

3. The Weather

Yes it was sunny and in the 70's. We heard Seattle had snow. That's too bad...
The first day there it was extremely windy (landing was scary) but this wind farm indicated that they get enough to power the grid for the ever expanding population there. Hooray for renewable resources! But the dusty and dry conditions, reeked havoc on Eczema sufferers like Dad and myself, who had to keep applying tons of lotion to our flaky skin. For an organism composed of 60% water, the desert does not seem like a good place to live.

4. Joshua Tree Madness

During a quick stop, Ken enlightened us with an interpretive dance of the Joshua Tree. Did you know that while it was 74 degrees in Palm Springs, it was only 52 degrees up in Joshua Tree National Park? Guess who forgot long pants and coats? All of us. We toured this jewel of the National Park System with our seatbelts on.

5. Family time

Most importantly, I spent some quality time hanging out with these cool dudes--and no golfing involved either. I'm not saying it's completely pointless, but it kinda is. We also visited with Bev's aunt and uncle one evening. They told us about the "sex life of a date" (the kind you eat), but we didn't actually get to eat any so we'll order some.

All in all a good time, and now back to the real world.

Scene at the Airport

As most vacations do, our trip to Palm Springs started at the airport and the craziest sh-- happens to us there.

On the way to our departing gate Wednesday morning, Ken and I made a pit stop at the restrooms. Within 100 feet, we could see and hear a wailing child being disciplined by his mother outside the women's restroom.
She said, "If you don't get in there, you will not get any DVD's on the plane. I'm going to count to five. 5-4-3-2-1...Okay no movies on the plane." At this, the child, who I judged to be about 3-years-old, cried even louder. Then she threatened to take away his books and he approached hyper-ventilation.

But something was odd about this public disciplining: It seemed like the mother wasn't trying to find out why he was so freaked out and the worst thing was the way she interacted with him. She gestured and projected her voice like she was performing on stage. Every woman coming or going in the restroom gave the "this-woman-is-crazy" look to one other. But no one said anything.

Ken, who was waiting for me, saw all of it. As we walked away, Ken grew more agitated by the scene. He wanted to say something to her. But I told him that interfering with parent-child situations is muy complicado.

"We are only seeing a snapshot of this situation," I said scurrying toward our gate. "We have no idea what else is going on."

But he made some good points: the way she was dealing with the child could be construed as a form of psychological abuse. She seemed to revel in his frustration and didn't do anything to defuse his anxiety about being in or going to the restroom. The disruptive way she "performed" for the crowd indicated a lack of judgement and the tone of the child's crying hinted at actual terror.

"Are we to mind our business so much that a child can get psychologically abused?" Ken asked. "When do we have the right to step in and say something?"

Now, I truly admire and love Ken's sensitivity to people. It is a trait I don't have enough of, but it's a slippery slope getting involved with strangers. We arrived at our gate and while I mulled over the safety of my isolationist policy, I couldn't help but feel less human and cowardly. Ken meanwhile decided that he wanted to go back and "see" what was going on and say something if warranted. So with reservations, I accompanied him.

A full 15-minutes had passed since we'd last been down the corridor and there was no sign of them. But soon we could hear the familiar howling from within the women's restroom. I walked in and exchanged "the look" with all the ladies. This time the mother was in a closed stall and I could see her kneeling down with the child facing her. She said in a volume that the entire ladies room could hear, "There are no bathrooms on the plane. You have to go now!"

Unbeknownst to me, Ken had alerted a TSA official. The official came into the bathroom and paused outside the closed stall and just as she was about to knock, the mother rushed out with the boy tucked under her arm like a Sunday paper. He was still crying, red-faced.

The TSA gal chased after them, "Is everything alright here?" she asked.
"Fine!" the mother replied.

By then the mother strode toward the exit with the TSA lady following. Ken stood outside and when the mother passed him, he shouted at her "You need help! You need help!"
I froze.

Another bystander inadvertently blocked me from getting to Ken's side but secretly I was glad. The confrontation, the child's crying and Ken's outburst brought tears to my eyes. Suddenly I felt sorry for that mom. Because no one wants to be "the bad mom" who loses it in public with a screaming kid. And certainly no mom wants to be called out by a stranger. Then my husband came face-to-face with the child's father and I feared the worst.

"Do you have children?" the father demanded, holding his squirming, crying son.

Ken had to answer 'no' and that effectively eliminated all his credibility.
The man said, "You should talk to some parents or become one before you make any judgements. Do you want to take care of this?" and held out his crying, squirming son to Ken.

Ken stepped back but later regretted that he hadn't tried. The mother sarcastically thanked Ken for his "helpful" advice and the family stormed off down the corridor. And these were older, (seemingly) educated parents in their late 30's.

The TSA gal said she'd have an officer check on them at the gate.

*****

Needless to say, the incident left us both a bit rattled.

Can a person without a child judge mistreatment? When is it acceptable to get involved?

70 degrees and no clouds

Dad, Ken & I are in Palm Springs for the next few days on vacation.
The internet access at the resort is spotty and the competition for the computers in the business center is fierce. So I may not get around to a full entry until Saturday.

But I'll make it worth your while because as always, something weird and traumatic happened at the airport yesterday. Something that made me question my morality.

And on a lighter note, Dad rented a clown car for us to drive around in Palm Springs.

You'll see...

Portland Comedy Train

Amy and I are huge fans of the comedienne Kathy Griffith from Bravo's "My Life on the D-List" and "Suddenly Susan" fame. So we traveled by train to Portland on Saturday and in less than 24 hours, we managed to eat like queens at Pazzo's, attend her comedy show, ride the hotel elevator with the coach of the Denver Nuggets and have Sunday brunch with Mother. Here is Kathy during her show. We were up in the balcony so the optical zoom is maxed out. Lots of dish on celebrity encounters and insights on current events.

I must tell you that traveling by train is not too bad. The Tacoma/Olympia bit is amazingly picturesque. I do recommend it. It does take four hours to get to Portland but you can avoid all traffic, stand in no security lines, drink alcohol (if that's your bag), walk around, use the bathroom all you want and keep young children entertained. What's not to like?


So this is Amy & I at dinner. Lots of girl talk and relaxation on our quick getaway down south. Great to see Mom too, albeit brief. Good times.

Flashback 2004: Italy

We liked holding up stuff up in Pisa & Burano.

Camping + Deep Thoughts

A few weekends ago, we camped on Camano Island with Dan & Jill. One of the nights we where there, I dreamt I was an aria-singing, 17th century duchess, riding my electric unicorn while diamonds rained from the sky. But the most bizarre thing about it all was that I had actually agreed to go camping...

Though we stayed in heated cabins, we did have to go outside to cook and use the centralized shower/bathroom. Without a doubt, Dan & Jill took very good care of us. There seems to be a camping equivalent to everything you can find in the kitchen: a free-standing propane stove with griddle, a rack to prop bread over the propane burner aka "a toaster," headlamps, coolers, pans and so forth.



Dan introduced us to a cookie with embedded dark chocolate so that when making smores we didn't have to precariously balance, squeeze and break them. Brilliant! Now, washing dishes in the wilderness is not that easy either--especially sanitization. How do you accomplish this when you're scrubbing pans, rinsing from a cold water spigot and setting them on the dirty, dirty ground? Jill came up with a excellent solution: once they were washed at the cold tap, she filled a plastic tub with boiled water then soaked them. It's like a Japanese-style bath for the dishes. That Dan & Jill--such resourceful people.

Another cool thing to do in nature is make music as Dan and Ken discovered when they assembled a driftwood marimba shown here:


It made an unexpectedly rich sound and the guys jammed for a long time on it, leaving Ken with two well-earned blisters. But the fact they made something out of stuff lying around made me think about people from a much earlier time...

How did the Native Americans survive back then without things like plastic tubs, baggies, tupperware and water bottles? Things I take for granted like food preparation, going to the bathroom, saying warm and finding shelter were all basic survival concerns for them. It caused me to reflect throughout the weekend and ask myself when feeling inept, "What would the Native Americans Do?"

My answer: I'm really not sure, but in the grand scope of things, it's got to amount to more than just tribal casinos & firework stands.