briefly in Bend

Yesterday's drive was long - a solid 8 hours - and pretty boring until we reached Red Bluff.  The northern valley is flat and yellow, with an occasional silo to obstruct the wide-open vistas.  Then things change.  The flat gives way to gentle hills, then stands of pines - it looks like I-50 on the way to Tahoe - and suddenly, the majestic Mt. Shasta.  There's just a dusting of snow way at the top.

A right turn at Weed and we're headed for Bend.  The sky was heavy with big piles of white clouds.

We got to the Red Lion Inn about 3 PM, settled in and relaxed.  An hour or so later I caught the scent of rain on hot cement, looked outside and rain was pouring down.  If you look carefully you can see the ripples on the pool surface.  Hail! 

 It didn't last long but did cool things down.  We went to the Deschute's Brewery for dinner, got back to the room and called it a night.  

This morning we're up and reading to head on to Walla Walla.  A message from Alex to let us know it's HOT and will continue to get HOTTER during our short (3-night) stay, but fortunately she installed AC in her remo so it should be fine if we stay inside!

These beautiful flower baskets hang all over town (Bozeman has them, too).  This one is from outside our hotel door.

poolside cocktails

Last evening we enjoyed a couple of bottles of Dolce Vita®  prosecco with our former and current neighbors.  Robin (l) was visiting from Washington, DC where she currently lives.  She lived next to us for many years before moving to Maryland.  She returned for two years and stayed in our house during our Mexican trips.  Erin (r) lives in the house behind ours.  We were celebrating Robin's visit and Erin's recent retirement from the Big U after who-knows-how-many-years of "faithful service."  Does she look happy or what?  Great to get caught up with Robin who spent a year as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco and from her wonderful stories, loved every minute of it.

Today is packing, laundry, banking, etc., all those things one does before leaving on a trip.  The car has had its oil changed, its tires rotated, its (bottomless) gas tank filled.  We're ready to take off for Bend, OR early tomorrow morning.  Next post from there.

BYOB

That is, Be Your Own Barista!

Mr. C is about to celebrate a BIG birthday.  I know he likes his cafe au lait when we're in France, so I decided to bring it home!  I started looking for a milk foamer and found this little gem while in La Jolla.

I gave it to him early so we can (a) try it out and, if we like it, (b) take it on our up-coming road trip.  We used it this morning and it is complete success!

You just put the cold milk in the top compartment, mash the big black button.  It glows red; when it turns off, the milk is hot and foamy!

Pour/scoop it into your coffee and enjoy!

The next step is learning how to do those pretty designs on top.  But one thing at a time . . .

iMac report:  a failing hard drive, replaceable for $100.  Better than having to buy a new one.  All other systems in the machine are fine.   I'll pick it up after we return from Bozeman.  In the meantime, the light-as-Air® will travel with us.

Rx report:  trip to see the doc yesterday to check on the thyroid issue.  Much improved.  Not so hungry, hair loss seems to have slowed.  Better living through chemistry, I guess.  She did say that thyroid issues are more common in diabetics and she was surprised that I've lasted this long without intervention.  I've been a diabetic for 47 years!  Hard to believe that I've done anything for that long!

iMac failure

It appears the trusty iMac has had some sort of stroke or other serious electronic breakdown.  It has simply ceased to work.  The screen gets light after I turn it on but that's it. I'm taking the machine up to CoreCare (the Apple repair shop) on Tuesday and am hoping for a quick fix.  It's 5 years old and I really don't want to do a replacement.  Until now it has been a very good machine; big screen, right size for the desk, easy-to-use keyboard, etc.  I have a feeling that what has set it off is the installation of OS X 10.9.3.   A couple of weeks ago there was an article in 9 to 5 Mac about the havoc this OS update has been causing.  If the remedy suggested is to reinstall, I can't do that because I can't open up the machine in the first place.  And the change has completely fouled up the font that shows up on this blog draft so it all has to be reformatted by hand.  Alas.

But back to the SoCal visit.  It was such a pleasure to see old schoolmates.  One lunch at the Beach Club in La Jolla, one lunch at Il Fornaio in Coronado, daily morning walks with Maggie (the dog) in the typical La Jolla June Gloom.  Surfers were out, of course, but not many beach strollers.  Chilly and damp.

We went to Evensong at the Cathedral on Sunday.  The music was heavenly, the choir divine.  Vicky is very happy there, and why not.  Such glorious sounds several days a week.  My hostess was getting ready to pick up a new Golden puppy yesterday (Saturday) to join Maggie in the household. 

The big treat, however, was going to the Sunday morning farmers market held on the playground of La Jolla Elementary School.  The entire space is taken up with sellers of fruits and veggies, flowers, prepared food ~ with a nice picnic spot all set up with tables and benches ~ and other goodies such as Oriental rugs, clothing, jewelry, hats, bags.  All really good stuff.

Baby one-sie

Gorgeous greens

An arresting display of cukes

We bought some of these for dessert.  Sweet and juicy!

For your three bean salad!  As  long as you cook the purple ones separately . . .

I had a completely uneventful return home, leaving San Diego at a cool 72º and emerging from the plane in Sacramento to 104º.  Quite a change.  It's been hot all week but cools down at night thanks to the Delta breezes.  We're expecting heat all week, good for the tomatoes but hard on the gardens, especially with restricted water usage.  Lawns are brown and dry, annuals are dead in their tracks, even the beautiful Crepe Myrtles are looking a bit wilted.

We're heading off to Walla Walla and Bozeman in a week to see daughters, inspect Alex's new house, celebrate Mr. C's birthday en famille.  Our annual summer road trip.  I'll put up pictures on Instagram so if you have it on one of your iProducts, give a look.  I leave you with a shot of a beautiful latte I had with friends on Wednesday morning.  It was as yummy as it looks.

one flight, two frights, three cheers

I am using a non-Apple computer and I have no idea how to put up photos so this will be an unillustrated post!  My hostess doesn't have Wi-Fi so I didn't bother to bring the Air. 

First, the flight.  Thursday afternoon from Sac to San Diego.  Then the frights.  I have no idea what happened.  The pilot announced we were 18 minutes from landing and be sure the seat belts are securely fastened blah blah blah.   But the plane flew far beyond the San Diego airport, ,\ over Coronado and the Naval Air Station almost to the Mexican border.  Then it headed east, slowing air speed and losing altitude as we went.   This was the first fright.  After about 15 minutes of this I began to get just a bit edgy.  On we went, slowly.  Suddenly there was a big thud ~ wheel dropping? ~ followed by a slight acceleration and a wide, gradual arc north and finally northwest.  Some 20 minutes later we landed.  I realized when we touched down that I was gripping the armrests so hard my hands were cramped.    Perhaps the wheel wouldn't drop down and it had to be fussed with.  I don't know and nothing was said but the passengers were very quiet during all of this so I was not the only one who noticed.   The next fright was the van driver who decided he'd try to set some land speed record between the airport and my destination in La Jolla.  A veritable Juan Fangio. 

But three cheers, I made it safely to the welcome of my hostess and her beautiful retriever, Maggie.  And here I'll stay until Monday when I return home on a completely uneventful flight.  Right!

the week's doings

On Monday evening I met friends for a long-delayed dinner at a local Mexican restaurant.  They serve Indio beer, my beach staple, and pretty good chiles rellenos.  We sat out in the patio in the lovely, warm evening and got all caught up on the news of mutual friends and colleagues from the past.  These lovely papel picados fluttered above in the soft Delta breeze (thank goodness for those cooling Delta breezes).

The ones I have are made of the thinnest, most flimsy tissue paper and are good for only a few days and then they shred and fade or get soggy in the moist beach air.  But these are made of plastic and would probably last for the entire season.  I gotta get me some.

This morning, on my walk, I saw these bright yellow beauties, their faces turned to the early sun.  They are along the edge of a vacant lot.  We have the birds to thank, I think.

A not-so-good pix taken with iPod.  Need to take with "real" camera to get close-up.

Tomorrow I take off for my annual visit with friends in La Jolla.  On the program are:  visit with Donna in La Jolla on Friday, lunch with Sandy on Saturday ~ we'll go to Il Fornaio in Coronado and snag a table by the windows with a dynamite view of the bay ~ Evensong at St. Paul's Cathedral on Sunday afternoon and a visit with my sister, Vicky, who is buried there, then home on Monday.  There will be walks ~ to the beach, along Girard Street, around the old campus ~ and some good eats.  And lots and lots of talk.  The world is always a better place after we solve its problems.  I'll take pictures and post them when I get home.

nature in the nabe

Yesterday afternoon I sat out in the garden to finish up the book I was listening to ~ Heads in Beds:  a reckless memoir of hotels, hustles, and so-called hospitality* ~ when I noticed something bright blue flitting around in the oleanders.  I got the trusty Lumex, used the powerful zoom, and saw this gorgeous, delicate dragonfly dining on the nectar of the blossoms.

For even more of nature's beauties, here's a photo of a beautiful garden in my neighborhood.  The owner has planted one or two of favorite everythings.  The result is a riot of color and about a thousand shades of green.  She/he changes these beds seasonally so there's always something growing and blooming.  

Taken with the iPod camera

A feast for the eye of the early morning walker. 

*  Thanks, MSMASSF for the book recommendation.  Loved it!