Did anyone feel my head pop off last week?
I went with Xan down to my mom's house. Xan is really feeling the loss of all her grandparents and wants to spend as much time as she can with her last remaining grandparent, my mom. Because these are precarious times for my mom I went with Xan. Can't trust my mom to drive the 4 hours to bring Xan back by herself nor is she willing to put Xan on a train by herself so I travelled with Xan.
It was nice in some ways. I brought all of our receipts for the 2005 and 2006 and sorted them on the dining room table for 2 days. That gave Xan some good alone time with Granny. We went out for chowder. We sorted a bunch of stuff that was on the dining room shelves. It was fun to hear all the family stories about where this & that came from and we put little pieces of tape with peope's names on it on things that Granny knows she wants that certain person to have. That was very sweet.
My head popped off later when I asked my mom if I could see her will. She told me this summer that I am the executor and I wanted to see the will so that I have an idea of what I'm supposed to do when the time comes. She told me it was all in a file in a drawer put there by my father. So one morning while Xan is sleeping and Mom is off at cardiac therapy I go in the drawer and find the file.
No big deal I take it to the dining room table with my breakfast to look it over. There is a will that was made in 1997. My brother, Mark is the executor. Fine with me. My head is still intact. A bit confusing because she has said for months that I am the executor but that's OK. I'm good with Mark being in charge. I put everything back in the file. Mark is in charge I don't need to look anymore.
Mom gets home as she is having her breakfast I bring up the subject of the will. She is surprised. There was a scandalous family incident in 1997 and my parents were angry with Mark and they made someone else the executor. I take out the will and low and behold there is a codicil at the end. In 1997 my parents made me co-executors with my brother David. That's when my head popped off. Right there in the kitchen. It must have been a pretty impressive sight for my mother.
David is my oldest brother. He is an alcoholic and drug abuser. He is my rapist. He is the one who gets into a drunken argument with his girlfriend, loads a gun, hands it to her saying, "If you hate me so much than you should kill me!" and she takes the gun and shoots herself in the head right in front of him. Yeah, my head took a trip to the moon. It took my voice with it and I was speechless.
Later that day I tell my mom that this needs to be changed. I can't be co-executors with 'him'.
The next day I open up the file again and find out that I am co-trustees of the trust with 'him' and the 'he' is the one who gets power-of-attorney. It's strange to me how I had the whole file and yet I discovered all this in stages. I guess I could only take a bit at a time to keep my sanity.
First of all, what posessed my parents to think that David is a good choice for any of this is beyond me. I do not feel malice toward him. I wish him no harm. I've had lots of therapy and I'm in a good space in my life. But really, he is not the one to be in charge of anything.
Mom and I talked about it. I looked her in the eye and said, "He is the one who raped me for a long time Mother. I am not doing this with him. You get that?" She got it. I didn't even talk to her about why they chose him. That's their baggage.
She say's she is going to change the will and my brother Mark and I are going to be co-executors. I talked it over with Mark and we are good with that.
I just can't get out of my head that it's been ten years that the will has been this way. All the time I have led a happy existence and if anything had happened to my parents I would have been plunged into hell. All that time I never knew. I find it very disturbing.
I'll tell you though, I couldn't wait to leave. Couldn't wait to come home to my household. My loving nucleus.
Yesterday I spent almost all day in my jammies puttering around and watching stupid TV.
Home is good.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
I am amazing.
We spent all weekend in NYC. Artie was taking a sculpting class with Wendy Froud. She made a really cool faery doll. The rest of us went out to eat and visited a museum a day. The Natural History Museum, The Tenement Museum (my favorite!!), and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was glorious and now we are broke. Very broke. Like Michael asked me yesterday if I was flipping out yet broke.
No not yet. We are used to being broke and we have overdraft protection that will slush us for a week until the wholesale orders money comes in. We spent all our fun in NYC and this week we will be eating out of the cabinets. Oh I do have to go see my Mom and we'll use a credit card for the train tickets. Haven't used a credit card in over a year...this will smart but it's not that much money so I won't flip out.
I'm not the only one who plays money roullette, right? I married an artist what can I say. And I am happy to say that every year he is a more successful one.
So today I am up early and I am creating a high school transcript for Artie. She is applying to a studio arts summer program at Skidmore College. I am here to tell all the unconventional homeschool families in the world that this is possible and that there is life without a high school diploma. I must say that Artie sounds so cool on paper. Now mind you this is an informal transcript that I am creating for her but WOW (I must have a moment of glory for myself and Michael and our choices of schooling) she sounds so unique and awesome and interesting. I must quote you my last paragraph:
"In Sum, Artie has not had a conventional education. She is the daughter of unconventional srtists. She has traveled the US extensively wither her family doing Art Shows. In every city that she is in there is some sort of cultural experience that she is exposed to with the attempt to keep the exposure homeschool related. In most likelihood she has been to more major cities and museums than anyone you know."
Yeah, I can lay it on.
I guess I'm so elated because I have been putting off creating this document for a week now. And when I finally sat down this morning my fingers flew through over the keyboard. Magic erupted on the screen and Artie is compiled into one cool individual with a lot of education under her belt.
I am amazing.
No not yet. We are used to being broke and we have overdraft protection that will slush us for a week until the wholesale orders money comes in. We spent all our fun in NYC and this week we will be eating out of the cabinets. Oh I do have to go see my Mom and we'll use a credit card for the train tickets. Haven't used a credit card in over a year...this will smart but it's not that much money so I won't flip out.
I'm not the only one who plays money roullette, right? I married an artist what can I say. And I am happy to say that every year he is a more successful one.
So today I am up early and I am creating a high school transcript for Artie. She is applying to a studio arts summer program at Skidmore College. I am here to tell all the unconventional homeschool families in the world that this is possible and that there is life without a high school diploma. I must say that Artie sounds so cool on paper. Now mind you this is an informal transcript that I am creating for her but WOW (I must have a moment of glory for myself and Michael and our choices of schooling) she sounds so unique and awesome and interesting. I must quote you my last paragraph:
"In Sum, Artie has not had a conventional education. She is the daughter of unconventional srtists. She has traveled the US extensively wither her family doing Art Shows. In every city that she is in there is some sort of cultural experience that she is exposed to with the attempt to keep the exposure homeschool related. In most likelihood she has been to more major cities and museums than anyone you know."
Yeah, I can lay it on.
I guess I'm so elated because I have been putting off creating this document for a week now. And when I finally sat down this morning my fingers flew through over the keyboard. Magic erupted on the screen and Artie is compiled into one cool individual with a lot of education under her belt.
I am amazing.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Was that my biggest mistake?
Last night Michael and I went to a Ballroom Dancing class. It was goofy and fun. We learned how to Foxtrot and Waltz. More to the point we learned how we are supposed to do the Foxtrot and the Waltz.
Just as I was getting ready for bed Artie tells me that she has written a letter to her cousin and she wants me to keep a copy of it. She is concerned that her Aunt (yeah, Michael's sister who is the executrix) will somehow use the letter against her and she wants documentation of it. Oh gosh, poor kid. I said OK and asked if I could read it. She said sure.
That was my first mistake.
She says in her letter that the disagreement between their parents (us and her cousin's) has split their friendship apart and she doesn't want that to happen. She added that she has an email address that her parents "can't" look at and she would like her cousin to email her. I was truly put out and I said something.
That was my next mistake.
In all of this conflict that we have had over my mother-in-law's estate my sister-in-law has spued such venom our way. She has convinced family friends how hurtful we are. I stood there and took it from one of my mother-in-laws best friends at my mother-in-laws memorial about how we (every family member execpt my sister-in-law) should back off and leave my sister-in-law alone. I have been working at the Farmer's Market and had family friends come to buy vegetables from where I work and when they realize it's me they clam up and don't make eye contact. I have endured rumors that have been spread about how awful we are to the poor woman over on West Lane and is in charge of her mother's estate.
I have taken it in stride. The family and friends that we are close to know exactly what is going on. They know that every decision that we have made along the way has been a weighty one. How at the beginning we tried to talk to my sister-in-law, tried to get her to come to some kind of balance. We ended up with lawyers because she put us there. She so thoroughly backed us into the proverbial corner.
Now there I was standing in my own living room with a daughter whom I adore and I could have whopped her one good. I was flipping out over the word "can't". My daughter is a terrible speller. I sat down with her and created her email account with her because I type quickly and accurately. I know her username and password. I can look at her email anytime that I want. I do not. I respect her privacy. She purposely chose that word "can't" because her cousin's mother does not hold such respect. In the past Artie has written to her cousin via email and gotten a response from her Aunt. That really irked her. So she wants to let her cousin know, for certain, that she can email her in confidence. I get it, I do.
But...to perpetuate the illusion that we are 'hurtful and bad' people from my own daughter sent me over the top. In all of this the greatest pain for me is that my niece believes that we are awful people. She tells her dad that and she has said it to her mother in public. All of which gets back to me. At my mother-in-law's memorial I walked up to her and put my hand on her back to get her attention. When she turned her head and saw it was me she jumped back and flinched...I could have burst into tears of sorrow.
So, Artie says that she is totally comfortable keeping up this false illusion if it means keeping up her relationship with her cousin. She doesn't feel that she can say to her cousin...'Hey we both believe that our parents are in the right but let's get beyond that and be close again.' She doesn't feel that she can change 'can't' to 'don't'. She says that I am over reacting.
I'm standing in the living room crying my brains out and hyperventilating over the word "can't".
Was that my biggest mistake?
Just as I was getting ready for bed Artie tells me that she has written a letter to her cousin and she wants me to keep a copy of it. She is concerned that her Aunt (yeah, Michael's sister who is the executrix) will somehow use the letter against her and she wants documentation of it. Oh gosh, poor kid. I said OK and asked if I could read it. She said sure.
That was my first mistake.
She says in her letter that the disagreement between their parents (us and her cousin's) has split their friendship apart and she doesn't want that to happen. She added that she has an email address that her parents "can't" look at and she would like her cousin to email her. I was truly put out and I said something.
That was my next mistake.
In all of this conflict that we have had over my mother-in-law's estate my sister-in-law has spued such venom our way. She has convinced family friends how hurtful we are. I stood there and took it from one of my mother-in-laws best friends at my mother-in-laws memorial about how we (every family member execpt my sister-in-law) should back off and leave my sister-in-law alone. I have been working at the Farmer's Market and had family friends come to buy vegetables from where I work and when they realize it's me they clam up and don't make eye contact. I have endured rumors that have been spread about how awful we are to the poor woman over on West Lane and is in charge of her mother's estate.
I have taken it in stride. The family and friends that we are close to know exactly what is going on. They know that every decision that we have made along the way has been a weighty one. How at the beginning we tried to talk to my sister-in-law, tried to get her to come to some kind of balance. We ended up with lawyers because she put us there. She so thoroughly backed us into the proverbial corner.
Now there I was standing in my own living room with a daughter whom I adore and I could have whopped her one good. I was flipping out over the word "can't". My daughter is a terrible speller. I sat down with her and created her email account with her because I type quickly and accurately. I know her username and password. I can look at her email anytime that I want. I do not. I respect her privacy. She purposely chose that word "can't" because her cousin's mother does not hold such respect. In the past Artie has written to her cousin via email and gotten a response from her Aunt. That really irked her. So she wants to let her cousin know, for certain, that she can email her in confidence. I get it, I do.
But...to perpetuate the illusion that we are 'hurtful and bad' people from my own daughter sent me over the top. In all of this the greatest pain for me is that my niece believes that we are awful people. She tells her dad that and she has said it to her mother in public. All of which gets back to me. At my mother-in-law's memorial I walked up to her and put my hand on her back to get her attention. When she turned her head and saw it was me she jumped back and flinched...I could have burst into tears of sorrow.
So, Artie says that she is totally comfortable keeping up this false illusion if it means keeping up her relationship with her cousin. She doesn't feel that she can say to her cousin...'Hey we both believe that our parents are in the right but let's get beyond that and be close again.' She doesn't feel that she can change 'can't' to 'don't'. She says that I am over reacting.
I'm standing in the living room crying my brains out and hyperventilating over the word "can't".
Was that my biggest mistake?
Monday, March 26, 2007
Most Sincerely, Victoria Terra
Dear Friends and Family of Richard Kennedy Trevithick,
We don't know each other but I feel connected to you. Last weekend I carried Richard's name and his death date in a peace march protesting the continuation of the 'War in Iraq'. I realize that our views on politics may be different but I bet that our views on human loss are not. Wether we believe in the righteousness of this war or not I'm sure we can agree that Richard lost his future and that we are here to mourn his passing. I feel very honored to have walked with his name. Human life is a precious gift and I feel his loss very deeply.
I know so little about him. I know that he was too young to die; only 20. My oldest daughter is just about to turn 18. Her bithday is April 23th. We were celebrating her 15th birthday the day that you were mourning his passing at his funeral. I think that was the year that she had a sleepover. All of the girls ate homemade sushi, gave each other henna tattoos, slept in our converted schoolbus, and had homemade crepes for breakfast. How emotional it is for me to think that on such a happy day in my household your household was having such a solemn one. I know that Richard married his high school sweetheart because he wanted to marry the woman he loved before he went over to Iraq. I know that he pre-arranged that if anything happened to him over there that a bouquet of roses was to be sent to her. I know that at his funeral his father-in-law prosided over it, as well as his grandfather. It was held at a Bapist church so I assume that he was a bapist.
He looks gentle and kind in the picture that I found of him. Most of the military pictures of people that I see I think that they look tough and hard. Not Richard. He doesn't look the type of person that wants to kill another. Dare I say that? It said in the Washington Post that he enlisted because he wasn't ready for college. Dear God how can someone think that they are not ready for college but they are ready to go to war? It also said that he wanted to have a career in law enforcement. Not all cops are bullies...right? Not all soldiers are sociopaths...right? I am struggling with my bias, my own personal bigotry. No matter what I think of war or our administration or the military, I do believe in humanity. I would like to believe that Richard was a good guy. That he joined the Army with the best intentions of protecting people. That he would only harm someone if he really had to. That the God he believed in was kind and nondisciminatory.
I believe that no matter what you believe and that no matter what I believe that we can come together and weep for those that have died in this war. Wether we agree on our politics or our faith we can agree that Richard had so much more life to live and that we are all so very sad that he is not alive to live it.
I am a Mother. I can put aside my core belief of the wrongness of war (any war) and my dislike for President Bush. I can do that. I could even go to a Bapist Church and sit next to you at Richard's funeral. I could hold your hand. I could look you in the eye. And we would meet in our sorrow. I could say to you how very sorry I am for the lost life of Richard. We would meet in that place of understanding grief and know each other. We are not so different you and me after all.
I am so very, very sorry for your loss.
Most Sincerely,
Victoria Terra
We don't know each other but I feel connected to you. Last weekend I carried Richard's name and his death date in a peace march protesting the continuation of the 'War in Iraq'. I realize that our views on politics may be different but I bet that our views on human loss are not. Wether we believe in the righteousness of this war or not I'm sure we can agree that Richard lost his future and that we are here to mourn his passing. I feel very honored to have walked with his name. Human life is a precious gift and I feel his loss very deeply.
I know so little about him. I know that he was too young to die; only 20. My oldest daughter is just about to turn 18. Her bithday is April 23th. We were celebrating her 15th birthday the day that you were mourning his passing at his funeral. I think that was the year that she had a sleepover. All of the girls ate homemade sushi, gave each other henna tattoos, slept in our converted schoolbus, and had homemade crepes for breakfast. How emotional it is for me to think that on such a happy day in my household your household was having such a solemn one. I know that Richard married his high school sweetheart because he wanted to marry the woman he loved before he went over to Iraq. I know that he pre-arranged that if anything happened to him over there that a bouquet of roses was to be sent to her. I know that at his funeral his father-in-law prosided over it, as well as his grandfather. It was held at a Bapist church so I assume that he was a bapist.
He looks gentle and kind in the picture that I found of him. Most of the military pictures of people that I see I think that they look tough and hard. Not Richard. He doesn't look the type of person that wants to kill another. Dare I say that? It said in the Washington Post that he enlisted because he wasn't ready for college. Dear God how can someone think that they are not ready for college but they are ready to go to war? It also said that he wanted to have a career in law enforcement. Not all cops are bullies...right? Not all soldiers are sociopaths...right? I am struggling with my bias, my own personal bigotry. No matter what I think of war or our administration or the military, I do believe in humanity. I would like to believe that Richard was a good guy. That he joined the Army with the best intentions of protecting people. That he would only harm someone if he really had to. That the God he believed in was kind and nondisciminatory.
I believe that no matter what you believe and that no matter what I believe that we can come together and weep for those that have died in this war. Wether we agree on our politics or our faith we can agree that Richard had so much more life to live and that we are all so very sad that he is not alive to live it.
I am a Mother. I can put aside my core belief of the wrongness of war (any war) and my dislike for President Bush. I can do that. I could even go to a Bapist Church and sit next to you at Richard's funeral. I could hold your hand. I could look you in the eye. And we would meet in our sorrow. I could say to you how very sorry I am for the lost life of Richard. We would meet in that place of understanding grief and know each other. We are not so different you and me after all.
I am so very, very sorry for your loss.
Most Sincerely,
Victoria Terra
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Oh Goddess let us get through this one!!
A friend of mine recently told me that a teenager's world is so small. I 've been thinking about it all morning. Artie is having a teenage crisis. She is here in NY and wants to go back to Lopez but she is unable to find housing for herself. Living in our house is out of the question. It's too complicated for her to be responsible for the solar system and especially the propane system.
Poor kid. I feel for her. She came home for three months with the understanding that if we were unable to move in March that we would fly her home on or before April 1st. Well, April 1st is coming up our ass and she still doesn't know what she is doing. I was under the impression that she had this all figured out before she left Lopez. She thought that we were going to help her find a place to live come April (in other words we were going to find her a place to live). She's very cranky about having to put effort into things these days. I think it's the work vs. id thing.
We have, in and around her Lopez crisis, been talking a lot about her future. One week she wants to be a special effects makeup artist the next week she wants to go to art school the next week she wants to go and live in Seattle and take art classes the next week she wants to college and get a liberal arts degree. Who can keep up?
Last night I drove her home from an art show that we are doing so that she could go to work at the coffee shop today. We talked all the way home which is good because it made the 3 hours go by quickly. There is a summer art program here in Saratoga at Skidmore College. Michael is very good friends with the man who is head of the program and we are sure that Artie could get a spot in the Studio Art program. We propose that somehow we get enough money to let her be able to live on campus. That way she can get a college experience to see if that is want she wants to do. "But then I have to be here. You have no idea how much I loathe it here!" is what gets screamed back at me. She does admit, however, that the Studio Art program sounds really great. We propose that we fly her back to Lopez for her friends high school graduation and let her stay there for 3 weeks and then she comes back here for the Studio Art program and then in August hopefully we shall be ready to move (maybe). If we are not ready to move than she can decide what she wants to do.
I know she loves us. I know that at her age friends are important and she is very tight with her Lopez buddies. But really, to sacrifice things that you are passionate about just to hang with your friends. Oh...I think I remember a few arguments with my parents about not wanting to travel to Europe because I needed to stay with my friends in my hometown.
I don't feel like her world is small. I don't feel like she is small. It's just different priorities of a woman of 17 vs. a woman of 45. Oh Goddess let us get through this one!!
Poor kid. I feel for her. She came home for three months with the understanding that if we were unable to move in March that we would fly her home on or before April 1st. Well, April 1st is coming up our ass and she still doesn't know what she is doing. I was under the impression that she had this all figured out before she left Lopez. She thought that we were going to help her find a place to live come April (in other words we were going to find her a place to live). She's very cranky about having to put effort into things these days. I think it's the work vs. id thing.
We have, in and around her Lopez crisis, been talking a lot about her future. One week she wants to be a special effects makeup artist the next week she wants to go to art school the next week she wants to go and live in Seattle and take art classes the next week she wants to college and get a liberal arts degree. Who can keep up?
Last night I drove her home from an art show that we are doing so that she could go to work at the coffee shop today. We talked all the way home which is good because it made the 3 hours go by quickly. There is a summer art program here in Saratoga at Skidmore College. Michael is very good friends with the man who is head of the program and we are sure that Artie could get a spot in the Studio Art program. We propose that somehow we get enough money to let her be able to live on campus. That way she can get a college experience to see if that is want she wants to do. "But then I have to be here. You have no idea how much I loathe it here!" is what gets screamed back at me. She does admit, however, that the Studio Art program sounds really great. We propose that we fly her back to Lopez for her friends high school graduation and let her stay there for 3 weeks and then she comes back here for the Studio Art program and then in August hopefully we shall be ready to move (maybe). If we are not ready to move than she can decide what she wants to do.
I know she loves us. I know that at her age friends are important and she is very tight with her Lopez buddies. But really, to sacrifice things that you are passionate about just to hang with your friends. Oh...I think I remember a few arguments with my parents about not wanting to travel to Europe because I needed to stay with my friends in my hometown.
I don't feel like her world is small. I don't feel like she is small. It's just different priorities of a woman of 17 vs. a woman of 45. Oh Goddess let us get through this one!!
Monday, March 19, 2007
Ode to a museum.
While in Tucson we went to the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. This is my favorite museum in the whole US. All of the animals at the museum are animals that have have been injured or came from people that illegally owned them...things like that. This museum rescues animals. I can not say enough good things about this place. If we still lived in Tucson we'd all be docents there. Here is my photo essay:
This is our souvenir.
Ode to a museum.
This is our souvenir.
Ode to a museum.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Does it get any better than that?
On Thursday morning we got to have some quality time with Janos and his wife Rebecca.
If you are ever in Tucson and want to have a true dining experience you should eat at Janos. A real sweetheart of a man and a truly talented chef. Janos was Michael's employer when we lived in Tucson. Rebecca is a gifted artist and a saint for living with someone that is a chef/owner. It is such a demanding profession even before you add in being the owner of a restaurant.
We had a delightful breakfast eating outside on the patio at Blue Willow. When I was pregant with Artie I craved the homefries from Blue Willow. The girls were all excited about eating there so that they could have the homefries. Artie was excited to see Janos because all of her memories of him are from when she was real young. Now she is so grown up and tall.
We ate, we caught up, the girls played in the gift shop. It was nice to hear that Rebecca is painting. She and Janos seem happy and content. Warm fuzzies were shared all around. What a young couple Michael and I were when we lived in Tucson. It was the beginning of our life together. It's been 14 yrs. since we lived there. Janos was a big part of our lives back then..how sweet to see him looking and being so well.
That afternoon we took Xan over to his restaraunt to spend dinner service with him in the kitchen. WOW, huh? There is a link to his website in my sidebar. Rebecca designed the logo. That's the Catalina Mountains...I love the logo. Xan was there from 3:30 to 10:30. And what a blast she had! She just loved it. Here are some pictures that were taken.
This is Xan helping out the pastry chef.
This is Janos.
This is the kitchen.
This is a desert that Xan helped with. This is what they give people on their birthdays. If it's your birthday at Janos you can get one too.
This is Xan with the kitchen staff.
Janos brought Xan back to our friend's house at the end of the day. He asked if he could keep her.
Sorry Janos, she's still ours for while.
Xan wrote Janos a Thank You card the other day. In it she thanks him for loving every second of her time in the kitchen and that she now knows that she is very serious about wanting to be a chef.
Does it get any better than that?
If you are ever in Tucson and want to have a true dining experience you should eat at Janos. A real sweetheart of a man and a truly talented chef. Janos was Michael's employer when we lived in Tucson. Rebecca is a gifted artist and a saint for living with someone that is a chef/owner. It is such a demanding profession even before you add in being the owner of a restaurant. We had a delightful breakfast eating outside on the patio at Blue Willow. When I was pregant with Artie I craved the homefries from Blue Willow. The girls were all excited about eating there so that they could have the homefries. Artie was excited to see Janos because all of her memories of him are from when she was real young. Now she is so grown up and tall.
We ate, we caught up, the girls played in the gift shop. It was nice to hear that Rebecca is painting. She and Janos seem happy and content. Warm fuzzies were shared all around. What a young couple Michael and I were when we lived in Tucson. It was the beginning of our life together. It's been 14 yrs. since we lived there. Janos was a big part of our lives back then..how sweet to see him looking and being so well.
That afternoon we took Xan over to his restaraunt to spend dinner service with him in the kitchen. WOW, huh? There is a link to his website in my sidebar. Rebecca designed the logo. That's the Catalina Mountains...I love the logo. Xan was there from 3:30 to 10:30. And what a blast she had! She just loved it. Here are some pictures that were taken.
This is Xan helping out the pastry chef.
This is Janos.
This is the kitchen.
This is a desert that Xan helped with. This is what they give people on their birthdays. If it's your birthday at Janos you can get one too.
This is Xan with the kitchen staff.
Janos brought Xan back to our friend's house at the end of the day. He asked if he could keep her.
Sorry Janos, she's still ours for while. Xan wrote Janos a Thank You card the other day. In it she thanks him for loving every second of her time in the kitchen and that she now knows that she is very serious about wanting to be a chef.
Does it get any better than that?
That is if Beth will let me...
It's raining here. It's balmy and very Spring-like. I look out the window and say very, very softly so that Mother Nature won't here me..."I think Spring is on it's way." Of course I know that it is March and Spring is really not here but with the crazy weather we have these days anything can happen.
I'm back home. Been home for 1 full day now and I'm exhausted. Mothers will do that. I want to finish my vacation stories and pictures....
I called my friend Doe (Doreen really but for some reason I have gotten into the habit of nicknaming her Doe). We met when I was doing a lot of theater in Tucson. We were both members of a gay and lesbian theater company. She is a buyer for a natural foods warehouse. Doe and her wife Robin
have (since I last saw them) bought an adobe that sits right up against the mountains that are west of Tucson. They are very close to Gates Pass. If you ever go to Tucson you must go over and drive through Gates Pass and then go and sit at the park right in the center of the Pass and watch the sunset. It's an awesome sight.
We decided that our household (the whole 9 lot of us) was going to go over to Doe and Robin's for dinner. We all wanted to see this house and it's view. Believe me, we were not disappointed! I have no great picture of the view but the Tucson lights were magical and D & R have this humungeous picture window with two lounging chairs set up in front of it. The kids took advantage.
We had such a fun time. D & R have just redone their kitchen and there is a huge island in the middle with bar chairs. It's a great place to sit and gather. It's a joy to hang out with "kitchen people". Doe, Beth, and I goofed around with my camera.
And I got this funny picture of our friend Chris who joined us there. We get to see Chris up on Lopez every few years because he has family just on the mainland from us. It was fun to see him in Tucson for a change.
We stayed late into the evening laughing our heads off and left with promises to stay at D & R's on future visits to our ol' homeland. That is if Beth will let me...
I'm back home. Been home for 1 full day now and I'm exhausted. Mothers will do that. I want to finish my vacation stories and pictures....
I called my friend Doe (Doreen really but for some reason I have gotten into the habit of nicknaming her Doe). We met when I was doing a lot of theater in Tucson. We were both members of a gay and lesbian theater company. She is a buyer for a natural foods warehouse. Doe and her wife Robin
have (since I last saw them) bought an adobe that sits right up against the mountains that are west of Tucson. They are very close to Gates Pass. If you ever go to Tucson you must go over and drive through Gates Pass and then go and sit at the park right in the center of the Pass and watch the sunset. It's an awesome sight. We decided that our household (the whole 9 lot of us) was going to go over to Doe and Robin's for dinner. We all wanted to see this house and it's view. Believe me, we were not disappointed! I have no great picture of the view but the Tucson lights were magical and D & R have this humungeous picture window with two lounging chairs set up in front of it. The kids took advantage.
We had such a fun time. D & R have just redone their kitchen and there is a huge island in the middle with bar chairs. It's a great place to sit and gather. It's a joy to hang out with "kitchen people". Doe, Beth, and I goofed around with my camera.
And I got this funny picture of our friend Chris who joined us there. We get to see Chris up on Lopez every few years because he has family just on the mainland from us. It was fun to see him in Tucson for a change.
We stayed late into the evening laughing our heads off and left with promises to stay at D & R's on future visits to our ol' homeland. That is if Beth will let me...
Friday, March 09, 2007
...something for you....OOOHHHH.
OK so I was just over at Mons Flumen and I can't leave her a comment. So here it is...
I like your new template except that I can't leave you a comment.
If you don't post pictures of the totally awesome worm cake I will have a hissy fit.
And....the cupcakes look good. As soon as I can get home for more than two days at a time I will bake something for you.....OOOHHHH.
I like your new template except that I can't leave you a comment.
If you don't post pictures of the totally awesome worm cake I will have a hissy fit.
And....the cupcakes look good. As soon as I can get home for more than two days at a time I will bake something for you.....OOOHHHH.
I'll let you know.
I am living through the experience of my mother having a "sort of" boyfriend. On Wednesday I took the train to MA from NY so that I could be with my Mom while she is recovering from her adolescence...no, no I mean that she is recovering from a stent being put into her heart.
My brother and his family took the first week. My sister-in-law and niece lasted 5 days and my brother lasted 7. I am the next wave of family support. My Mom is being a bit (I am understating) hard to deal with. Her inner teenage is on a rampage and we can only stand back and observe. She wants everyone out of her house and she wants to drive her big ol' Crown Victoria honkin' Ford. Instead I get to chaufer her around and try and remain calm during her bad direction giving.
That was my yesterday.
Today I am at the library goofing around while Mom is off playing bridge and later I have to meet her in some obscure town where she will be at some restaurant that she goes to after she plays bridge. I suffered through her trying to give me directions this morning and after I am done blogging I will Mapquest away. I am hoping that in about a half hour I can call my niece and get her to come with me. I don't relish the thought of having dinner with my Mom and her "sort of" boy friend. I met him over Christmas and frankly I think that he is a pompous lout. I just know that if I go out to eat with them alone that I will be the third wheel. Mom gets all doe eyed and would let the dog catch on fire in the presence of said "sort of" boy friend. Just picture the elder aged couple, myself, and one disgruntled with life only wears black teenager. Doesn't that sound fun? I'll let you know.
My brother and his family took the first week. My sister-in-law and niece lasted 5 days and my brother lasted 7. I am the next wave of family support. My Mom is being a bit (I am understating) hard to deal with. Her inner teenage is on a rampage and we can only stand back and observe. She wants everyone out of her house and she wants to drive her big ol' Crown Victoria honkin' Ford. Instead I get to chaufer her around and try and remain calm during her bad direction giving.
That was my yesterday.
Today I am at the library goofing around while Mom is off playing bridge and later I have to meet her in some obscure town where she will be at some restaurant that she goes to after she plays bridge. I suffered through her trying to give me directions this morning and after I am done blogging I will Mapquest away. I am hoping that in about a half hour I can call my niece and get her to come with me. I don't relish the thought of having dinner with my Mom and her "sort of" boy friend. I met him over Christmas and frankly I think that he is a pompous lout. I just know that if I go out to eat with them alone that I will be the third wheel. Mom gets all doe eyed and would let the dog catch on fire in the presence of said "sort of" boy friend. Just picture the elder aged couple, myself, and one disgruntled with life only wears black teenager. Doesn't that sound fun? I'll let you know.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
...a girl after my own heart.
I don't know about you but I've got a list of people in heart. Some of them are people I know well and see often, some of them are people that I know well and don't see so often, and some of them are people that I don't know well and never see. There is a list of people in my heart that makes my world better just by knowing that these people occupy space on this planet. I draw great comfort in knowing that they are out there walking this earth and living in this same time frame as I am.
Jessica Shuman is on the list. I experience great joy and comfort in her being her at the same time that I am being me in this lifetime.
She is a ham (of the vegetarian kind). Jess was our neighbor when we lived in Tucson. She was a student at the U of A. She's still the same vibrant woman now as she was then. We all got together one night for dinner and we had the opportunity to meet her boyfriend, Marco. As Jess would say he's...good people of the earth.
We met Jess at her "new to us" home. Jess bought a place near 4th Ave. a few years ago. She wanted to get a place in the Barrio but Tucosn real estate went through the roof about 4 yrs. ago and her home now was a good compromise. It's a sweet adobe style bungalow. This is her kitchen.
She did all the counter tile work herself. Wow...it's beautiful.
Jess is an artist, activist, and kindergarten teacher. She has 21 cats at her home. 6 of them are hers and the rest are up for adoption. This is Xan and Artie with just the tip of the iceberg.
Jess traps feral cats (of which there are a huge amount in Tucson) and takes them to be spayed or neutered and then releases them to where she got them from. Artie spent the night with her and went on some midnight cat reconnaissance. I have a feeling that it was a true adventure for her.
These are pictures of all of us having cake over at a place on 4th Avenue (our old stomping grounds). The cake was enormous!!
As were eating Jess said that she remembered all the cakes we used to make for the "Taste of Chocolate" event that was put on to raise money for the Arizona Right To Choose. What memories...that was when I had my baking business and I baked for restaurants in town. We used to make these enormous cakes and displays for this event and for every entry we did we had to provide 500 samples for people to try. We made chocolate bread, white chocolate prickly pear cake, brownies with green chilies and all sorts of other stuff. No wonder Jess hung out at our house...a girl after my own heart.
Jessica Shuman is on the list. I experience great joy and comfort in her being her at the same time that I am being me in this lifetime.
She is a ham (of the vegetarian kind). Jess was our neighbor when we lived in Tucson. She was a student at the U of A. She's still the same vibrant woman now as she was then. We all got together one night for dinner and we had the opportunity to meet her boyfriend, Marco. As Jess would say he's...good people of the earth. We met Jess at her "new to us" home. Jess bought a place near 4th Ave. a few years ago. She wanted to get a place in the Barrio but Tucosn real estate went through the roof about 4 yrs. ago and her home now was a good compromise. It's a sweet adobe style bungalow. This is her kitchen.
She did all the counter tile work herself. Wow...it's beautiful. Jess is an artist, activist, and kindergarten teacher. She has 21 cats at her home. 6 of them are hers and the rest are up for adoption. This is Xan and Artie with just the tip of the iceberg.
Jess traps feral cats (of which there are a huge amount in Tucson) and takes them to be spayed or neutered and then releases them to where she got them from. Artie spent the night with her and went on some midnight cat reconnaissance. I have a feeling that it was a true adventure for her.These are pictures of all of us having cake over at a place on 4th Avenue (our old stomping grounds). The cake was enormous!!
As were eating Jess said that she remembered all the cakes we used to make for the "Taste of Chocolate" event that was put on to raise money for the Arizona Right To Choose. What memories...that was when I had my baking business and I baked for restaurants in town. We used to make these enormous cakes and displays for this event and for every entry we did we had to provide 500 samples for people to try. We made chocolate bread, white chocolate prickly pear cake, brownies with green chilies and all sorts of other stuff. No wonder Jess hung out at our house...a girl after my own heart.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Jane, Jane, beautiful Jane.
And now for the day that all my blogger friends have been waiting for. I got to see Jane's socks up close and personal. 
We borrowed our friends car and drove up to Phoenix to check out an art show that we are thinking about participating in. It was a nice show and we got a brief visit with two artist friends from Utah that do that show. But....
The most important part of that trip was being able to visit with Jane.
Jane and her girl tribe met us at the art show and we hung out there for a few hours. We then went to the Willow House for coffee and chai. Then we all headed over to Bookmans. Bookmans is a great used bookstore that we used to shop at often when we lived in Tucson. It was fun to be around all the books but the prices are much pricier than 15 yrs. ago and I didn't buy anything. Sad to say that I buy most of books at half.com these days. Jane uses Bookmans like a lending library. She will buy her books than trade them back in for store credit to get more books. If I lived near a Bookmans I would do the same.
Then we got to drive to Jane's and see where the family is living these days and to see the place of many blog stories. It's a sweet house. It was funny that at the time that we were there the fence had been pulled up all around the house and there were lot's of guys outside working. Apparently Jane had an oleander hedge that had that day disappeared and YES we got to meet Bob. We were all feeling pooped so we ordered Chinese and we let Jane's husband pick it up on the way home from work. We loved the timing in all this. We all ate and chatted, the girls played.
Jane's girl #3 told Artie that she remembers her from when they lived in NY and Artie babysit for them Apparently she played spiders. Girl #3 was hoping that they could play spiders again.
In the living room Jane's house is this very sweet alter...so very Jane.
And, also, in the living room is this very big fish tank. Michael and I think that maybe it is 120ish gallons. Wow, huh? Jane's husband is really into it. So very him.
We exhausted ourselves with talk and catching up and we all staggered off to bed. The next morning I got to spend a few moments with Jane's husband before he had to take off for work. Poor husband having to leave us vacationers behind. In his absence we had a rousing game of Snorta.
I love being associated with people that are doing their bliss. I find it a true honor to witness people that are doing exactly what they arrived on the planet to do. Jane arrived on the planet to be a midwife. Oh, you should have seen her face when she brought out her photo album out of all the births that she has attended. She was so sweet when she asked me if I was OK with blood. I am...the photo album is quite moving and stunning. Jane glowed and her aura grew ten fold when she talked about each woman and their baby. What a joyous time it was I had being with Jane in her dining room watching her become one of the most beautiful parts of herself. On the wall by the stairs that goes up to her room are all these pictures of women. She calls it her wall of women...it's pretty spectacular.
We got to have a moment together on the couch.
We had to leave all to soon to go and have lunch with some Ren Fair friends before we went back to Tucson. We left with promises that we'll see the Jane clan again.
Jane, Jane, beautiful Jane.
We borrowed our friends car and drove up to Phoenix to check out an art show that we are thinking about participating in. It was a nice show and we got a brief visit with two artist friends from Utah that do that show. But....The most important part of that trip was being able to visit with Jane.
Jane and her girl tribe met us at the art show and we hung out there for a few hours. We then went to the Willow House for coffee and chai. Then we all headed over to Bookmans. Bookmans is a great used bookstore that we used to shop at often when we lived in Tucson. It was fun to be around all the books but the prices are much pricier than 15 yrs. ago and I didn't buy anything. Sad to say that I buy most of books at half.com these days. Jane uses Bookmans like a lending library. She will buy her books than trade them back in for store credit to get more books. If I lived near a Bookmans I would do the same.Then we got to drive to Jane's and see where the family is living these days and to see the place of many blog stories. It's a sweet house. It was funny that at the time that we were there the fence had been pulled up all around the house and there were lot's of guys outside working. Apparently Jane had an oleander hedge that had that day disappeared and YES we got to meet Bob. We were all feeling pooped so we ordered Chinese and we let Jane's husband pick it up on the way home from work. We loved the timing in all this. We all ate and chatted, the girls played.
Jane's girl #3 told Artie that she remembers her from when they lived in NY and Artie babysit for them Apparently she played spiders. Girl #3 was hoping that they could play spiders again.
In the living room Jane's house is this very sweet alter...so very Jane.
And, also, in the living room is this very big fish tank. Michael and I think that maybe it is 120ish gallons. Wow, huh? Jane's husband is really into it. So very him.
We exhausted ourselves with talk and catching up and we all staggered off to bed. The next morning I got to spend a few moments with Jane's husband before he had to take off for work. Poor husband having to leave us vacationers behind. In his absence we had a rousing game of Snorta.
I love being associated with people that are doing their bliss. I find it a true honor to witness people that are doing exactly what they arrived on the planet to do. Jane arrived on the planet to be a midwife. Oh, you should have seen her face when she brought out her photo album out of all the births that she has attended. She was so sweet when she asked me if I was OK with blood. I am...the photo album is quite moving and stunning. Jane glowed and her aura grew ten fold when she talked about each woman and their baby. What a joyous time it was I had being with Jane in her dining room watching her become one of the most beautiful parts of herself. On the wall by the stairs that goes up to her room are all these pictures of women. She calls it her wall of women...it's pretty spectacular.
We got to have a moment together on the couch.
We had to leave all to soon to go and have lunch with some Ren Fair friends before we went back to Tucson. We left with promises that we'll see the Jane clan again.
Jane, Jane, beautiful Jane.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
...toward the Tucson city lights.
Before I start this post about our trip to Tubac and Mexico I have a very important thing to tell you.
Last night as Michael was packing our bags and the girls are running around collecting their stuff I called the airline to confirm our reservation. I found out that I had made a mistake and instead of leaving at Friday at midnight we are really leaving Saturday at midnight. Oops. I guess I really did need a vacation.
Now back to our regular scheduled post....
One day on our trip we went South to Tubac and then on to Nogales, Mexico.
Tubac is an artists communtity that has it's origins in an old border fort town. Our friends had never been there so off we went. We brought a packed lunch and everyone ate in the van when we got there. The main village in Tubac is a bunch of adobe type buildings that are all tourist stores and art galleries. It was fun to walk through them and look and see what Southwest artists are up to. The one thing that really caught my eye is the art by this woman who manages Cirque de Soleil in Las Vegas. Think that style in figure form. I'm sorry I have no name or pictures but we've all got good imaginations, eh.
Xan felt like we should take a tour of the old presidio so off we went. This is a picture of she and her friend Kelly goofing off in school.
And then while we walking around it was raining. After the rain stopped there was this gorgeous rainbow. Xan snapped this of me.
We had had enough of window shopping and playing tourist in Tubac so off we head to Mexico.
These are our friends that we are staying with Beth (mom), Keith (dad), Ian (kid), Reilly (another kid), and Kelly (yet another kid). They are wonderful friends and hosts. It's one of those rare friendships where everyone gets along stupendously and sharing space with each other is relaxed and easy. I met Beth in an infant massage class just after our number 1's were born. We've been good friends ever since.
We walked around Nogales and did some shopping. Xan bought a cowboy hat, she's a regular vacquero now. Artie bought a red shirt for $4 that say's "pirates rock". Now Nogales is the border town of Mexico and Arizona that is just South of Tucson. We use to go there a couple of times a year when we lived in Tucson. Let me tell you...it hasn't changed much. It's still a dirty border town full of tourists and tourist trap shops. I think it was quite an eye opener for Miss Xan. We ambled around for an hour or so and then started asking the locals for suggestions for dinner. We ate at a great local joint called La Posada. This is us having a fun meal.
By the way, the flan was to die for.
It was yet another fun day of vacation and this time we all (8 of us because Beth had to leave early to be home for a Girl Scout cookie pick up) squished into the Vanagon and drove off north toward the Tucson city lights.
Last night as Michael was packing our bags and the girls are running around collecting their stuff I called the airline to confirm our reservation. I found out that I had made a mistake and instead of leaving at Friday at midnight we are really leaving Saturday at midnight. Oops. I guess I really did need a vacation.
Now back to our regular scheduled post....
One day on our trip we went South to Tubac and then on to Nogales, Mexico.
Tubac is an artists communtity that has it's origins in an old border fort town. Our friends had never been there so off we went. We brought a packed lunch and everyone ate in the van when we got there. The main village in Tubac is a bunch of adobe type buildings that are all tourist stores and art galleries. It was fun to walk through them and look and see what Southwest artists are up to. The one thing that really caught my eye is the art by this woman who manages Cirque de Soleil in Las Vegas. Think that style in figure form. I'm sorry I have no name or pictures but we've all got good imaginations, eh.
Xan felt like we should take a tour of the old presidio so off we went. This is a picture of she and her friend Kelly goofing off in school.
And then while we walking around it was raining. After the rain stopped there was this gorgeous rainbow. Xan snapped this of me.
We had had enough of window shopping and playing tourist in Tubac so off we head to Mexico.
These are our friends that we are staying with Beth (mom), Keith (dad), Ian (kid), Reilly (another kid), and Kelly (yet another kid). They are wonderful friends and hosts. It's one of those rare friendships where everyone gets along stupendously and sharing space with each other is relaxed and easy. I met Beth in an infant massage class just after our number 1's were born. We've been good friends ever since. We walked around Nogales and did some shopping. Xan bought a cowboy hat, she's a regular vacquero now. Artie bought a red shirt for $4 that say's "pirates rock". Now Nogales is the border town of Mexico and Arizona that is just South of Tucson. We use to go there a couple of times a year when we lived in Tucson. Let me tell you...it hasn't changed much. It's still a dirty border town full of tourists and tourist trap shops. I think it was quite an eye opener for Miss Xan. We ambled around for an hour or so and then started asking the locals for suggestions for dinner. We ate at a great local joint called La Posada. This is us having a fun meal.
By the way, the flan was to die for.It was yet another fun day of vacation and this time we all (8 of us because Beth had to leave early to be home for a Girl Scout cookie pick up) squished into the Vanagon and drove off north toward the Tucson city lights.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
...loving faces.
WELCOME TO THE ARIZONA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL...
What a beautiful show. On Saturday we went to the fair to visit with some friends of ours that we know from working at the Florida Ren Fair. It was great good fun to be patrons and to be able to see shows. We went with our friends that we are staying with so there were 9 of us. We are getting pretty good at travelling in a pack of 9.
We saw the Mud show, the Pirate show, and the Dead Bob show. They were all so entertaining and in the case of Dead Bob a bit crude and lude but still very funny. Oh and we saw the Jousting...a bit too violent for my taste but we saw the last show which is the joust to the death. I should have known better. We saw our friends working just like we were in Florida. That was a bit strange seeing them in garb and we were not.
Xan had to buy a grain of rice with your name on it. Personally, I have always wondered why these are sold at Ren Fairs but they are...at all of them. Artie got some pirate trinkets. I'm sure I must of bought something but I can't remember what. Maybe it was just mead.
As we were getting ready to leave the show at dusk we ran into the Wyldmen who do the Mud show. I stopped them to thank them for such a fun show. Low and behold they whipped out their musical vegetables and played them for us.
And then Michael the broccoli freak had to learn how to play the broccoli.
I am going to put a link to their website in my sidebar. Anyone who plays vegetables for a living deserves to have permanent stasis in my blog. So track to the right and click away.
After the show was closed we went out to dinner with the 9 of us and our friends Nixi, Lance, and their son Elan.
After a dinner full of revelry and laughs we all got into our various magical vehicles and flittered away into the evening air.
It was a day full of good times and loving faces.
What a beautiful show. On Saturday we went to the fair to visit with some friends of ours that we know from working at the Florida Ren Fair. It was great good fun to be patrons and to be able to see shows. We went with our friends that we are staying with so there were 9 of us. We are getting pretty good at travelling in a pack of 9.
We saw the Mud show, the Pirate show, and the Dead Bob show. They were all so entertaining and in the case of Dead Bob a bit crude and lude but still very funny. Oh and we saw the Jousting...a bit too violent for my taste but we saw the last show which is the joust to the death. I should have known better. We saw our friends working just like we were in Florida. That was a bit strange seeing them in garb and we were not.
Xan had to buy a grain of rice with your name on it. Personally, I have always wondered why these are sold at Ren Fairs but they are...at all of them. Artie got some pirate trinkets. I'm sure I must of bought something but I can't remember what. Maybe it was just mead.
As we were getting ready to leave the show at dusk we ran into the Wyldmen who do the Mud show. I stopped them to thank them for such a fun show. Low and behold they whipped out their musical vegetables and played them for us.
And then Michael the broccoli freak had to learn how to play the broccoli.
I am going to put a link to their website in my sidebar. Anyone who plays vegetables for a living deserves to have permanent stasis in my blog. So track to the right and click away.After the show was closed we went out to dinner with the 9 of us and our friends Nixi, Lance, and their son Elan.
After a dinner full of revelry and laughs we all got into our various magical vehicles and flittered away into the evening air.
It was a day full of good times and loving faces.
Monday, February 26, 2007
"It's all about the people."
It seems that this vacation is turning out to be all about the people. Not that we aren't doing fun things and going fun places but it's the people that are making our vacation.
On Thursday morning (still wearing our travelling clothes because it seems our luggage needed some extra time to be tourists in Omaha) we went to the Rodeo Parade. Now, all the years that we lived in Tucson we never once went to the Rodeo Parade. It was a girls day out...none of the men in the household at our friend's house wanted to go. We drove to the Tucson Mall and took a shuttle down to the Rodeo grounds and then we walked along the road until we got to a spot where we could get a good view. Here are some of the things that we saw:
This parade is said to be the longest non-motorized parade in the nation. I don't know about you but I was expecting to see a lot more creativity and imagination dispayed but mostly it was people riding on horses, local marching bands, people riding on horses, stuff like what you see in my expertly taken pictures (I know, I know I've got such a keen eye), and more people riding on horses. I was told later that all the horses are a very big deal. Apparently one gets to see all kinds of different kinds of horses. I admit it, I saw all kinds of different horses. I was so impressed that I tool all kinds of pictures of them. I quess I'm just not about the horses. People weren't even dressed interestingly. A few were but not many.
So, we watched the parade for about 40 minutes and then the young girls got bored so we moved on to more excitng things like this:
Now we thought that this was worth our attention.
Of course, there were a few "fry bread" booths to scope out. Ah, to be back in the land of real fry bread made by real Tucsonians. You can get plain (that means hot with grease) or with powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, and (my personal favorite) taco style with beans and stuff. Hey, the Native Americans have been around longer than my tribe and if it's good enough for them then it's good enough for me. This is a picture of all us girls:
As were sitting there a group of young thugs in training walked by and threw something on our blanket. It just so happens that a few minutes before that someone had thrown something at Artie's pantleg while we were watching the sumo wrestling. This thing is a small glass vile filled with some sort of yellowish liquid and when the vile is broken there is a vile smell that comes wafting forth. It smells like rotten eggs. One of the kids told me that one of the vendors was selling them. How did I miss that? Anyway I was told later that "you should have seen the look on my face" as I turned to the young thugs in training and told them exactly what I thought of what they just did. I remember the word "rotten" being repeatedly used.
All in all it was a great good time. We packed up our stinky, rotten egg smelling blanket and took the bus back to the mall.
I wish the parade itself had been visually more fun but like I said, "It's all about the people."
On Thursday morning (still wearing our travelling clothes because it seems our luggage needed some extra time to be tourists in Omaha) we went to the Rodeo Parade. Now, all the years that we lived in Tucson we never once went to the Rodeo Parade. It was a girls day out...none of the men in the household at our friend's house wanted to go. We drove to the Tucson Mall and took a shuttle down to the Rodeo grounds and then we walked along the road until we got to a spot where we could get a good view. Here are some of the things that we saw:
This parade is said to be the longest non-motorized parade in the nation. I don't know about you but I was expecting to see a lot more creativity and imagination dispayed but mostly it was people riding on horses, local marching bands, people riding on horses, stuff like what you see in my expertly taken pictures (I know, I know I've got such a keen eye), and more people riding on horses. I was told later that all the horses are a very big deal. Apparently one gets to see all kinds of different kinds of horses. I admit it, I saw all kinds of different horses. I was so impressed that I tool all kinds of pictures of them. I quess I'm just not about the horses. People weren't even dressed interestingly. A few were but not many.
So, we watched the parade for about 40 minutes and then the young girls got bored so we moved on to more excitng things like this:
Now we thought that this was worth our attention.Of course, there were a few "fry bread" booths to scope out. Ah, to be back in the land of real fry bread made by real Tucsonians. You can get plain (that means hot with grease) or with powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, and (my personal favorite) taco style with beans and stuff. Hey, the Native Americans have been around longer than my tribe and if it's good enough for them then it's good enough for me. This is a picture of all us girls:
As were sitting there a group of young thugs in training walked by and threw something on our blanket. It just so happens that a few minutes before that someone had thrown something at Artie's pantleg while we were watching the sumo wrestling. This thing is a small glass vile filled with some sort of yellowish liquid and when the vile is broken there is a vile smell that comes wafting forth. It smells like rotten eggs. One of the kids told me that one of the vendors was selling them. How did I miss that? Anyway I was told later that "you should have seen the look on my face" as I turned to the young thugs in training and told them exactly what I thought of what they just did. I remember the word "rotten" being repeatedly used.All in all it was a great good time. We packed up our stinky, rotten egg smelling blanket and took the bus back to the mall.
I wish the parade itself had been visually more fun but like I said, "It's all about the people."
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