Tucson in the fall

Tucson, AZ in the fall!  Fall was always my favorite season while living in Tucson for 37 years.  I've been in Colorado now for just over 7 years and fall is infinitely more colorful here, but I still loved Tucson.

We went back to Tucson to celebrate my upcoming first grandbaby.  My daughter Corinne lives in Kansas, her sister, stepsister and I are in Denver, and all the grams are in Tucson as well as most of Corinne's friends and other relatives.

Originally designed as a roadtrip, my mom was kind enough to help out with plane tickets for the four of us so that we didn't have to pile all four of us (including 6 mo pregnant Corinne) into a Prius for a 15.5 hour drive each way.  Blessings;)

We had a great time, visiting Eegee's for the seasonal favorite Italian ice, getting our obligitory Nico's breakfast burrito with chorizo, and finally, lunching at the amazing Mosaic cafe.

I love that we had the shower at my first husband's parents house, and that my second husband and his wife attended with their new baby;)  That's family that's created and generated!

The shower itself was lovely and lively and everyone enjoyed the "Little Golden Books" themed shower.  This baby will have a tremendous book library!  And shoes.  Lots of shoes.

Chi Town!

It's been seven years since I was at a Recruiting Conference.  Seven years as a result of joining a Franchise of MRI Network that promised I would attend (not) and four years of my own firm without a network (I thought).

As it turns out, I could join Top Echelon!  A fabulous network of hundreds of recruiters who have a bi annual conference.  Fall is Chicago, spring is someplace warm.

There are about four offices who do exactly what I do.  I got calls from two of them immediately after joining the network.  And then there are the ones who are "close" to my industry, discipline and geography.  Good to know.  Lots of basic training, desk level training, and the value of metrics.  In short, much of what I know and love.

My motto is "one golden nugget of info makes the conference worthwhile".  I got several.

And then there was Chicago!  We went to Portillo's, Harry Carey's, and to Greek Islands.   Splurged on a show at Second City called "A Clown Car Called Desire",  and visited the Art Institute of Chiago.  First time ever there!  As a child, we always did Marshall Fields, the Shedd Aquarium and the Museum of Science and Industry.  This was a great trip:)

Got the metro pass for the week and went into the city twice, was great to take the "L".  The only regret was not going all the way out to Oak Park/Berwyn to see grandma's old house, which we were able to see get sold a couple of years ago.  And I missed connecting with cousins as well.   Next year, I will know to connect earlier and see the McDaniels:)

As always, we ate well:)

Manhattan! Kansas, the Little Apple.

Well my summer ended with a rollicking good time in Manhattan.  It just sounds perfectly fine until you add the "Kansas" portion.  My daughter's husband had just deployed to Afghanistan, she was singlehandedly downsizing her pregnant self and two dogs from a three bedroom home into a one bedroom apartment, and all her friends were recently deployed along with the husband.  So off I went in my zippy little Mini Cooper on the seven hour drive. I made extraordinary time!

I'd forgotten how much I love driving alone.  FAST.  With the music blaring.  I had been worried about my ten year old little sunshine yellow car on such a long drive.  So of course, the first thing I see on the highway is a collection of rare and ancient cars.  Old model T's, old Buicks, old.  Really old cars.  There must have been a car show somewhere in KS, as I kept seeing them the whole drive long.  Blasting the stereo, I settled in behind a 1960's Ford F150 with a tricked out paint job and a wonderful 1940's TURQUOISE Studebaker truck.  Doing 90mph.  For over two hours we three wonderfully old and colorful vehicles swept through traffic on I-70 like a brilliantly colored necklace, dodging in and out of slower, newer vehicles along the way.  The clouds above split and joined non stop, occasionally splashing us with rain along the way.  I kept the sunshade pulled back and occasionally felt the need to look 360 degrees around me to confirm there were no tornados.  This was Kansas, after all.

I arrived safe and sound in Manhattan, Kansas in 6.5 hours.  A new, personal record.  Sans tickets, too.

The first item on the list was to locate a new coffee table.  Theirs was adorably decorated like an original Nintendo box, lovingly hand painted by Corinne, but too big for the new, smaller space.  Corinne assured me that she knew ALL the stores in KS.   She was sure of this!   So I found three new ones for her to try.  A new furniture store, and two thrift stores.  All had options, but the one she really liked was to make a new project for herself by transforming an old Samsonite hard side piece of luggage into a coffee table. That thrift store prides itself on repurposing and reusing old items and even has classes in the fall for same.

We took many clothing items into the swanky thrift near the KSU campus and got store credit for some items, but they had very few winter clothes yet to choose from.

I'm a big fan of reuse and repurpose and have always said "never pay retail", so it was really fun to find a creatively put together thrift store in such a small town.  In the same store we purchased the Samsonite from, I got a "new to me" sterling container for my beloved English Breakfast Tea, PG Tips, that fits perfectly on my counter.   And in the clothing store near to KSU, I found a "new to me" beautiful red purse for winter.  Then there is the inexplicable.   In a thrift store that boasted 3000 square feet, we bought over $100 dollar's worth of in the box Barbie dolls and Hallmark Barbie ornaments.

Neither Corinne nor Kelsey (my other daughter), nor I have EVER collected Barbies.  But they were so CHEAP!  I know OTHER people collect them!  And they were in great shape.  Barbies from the 80's and 90's.  Special edition Barbies.    Seven boxes of Barbies and over 20 Hallmark ornaments.  Hmmm.  And my daughter's pregnant.  Wondering now if it's going to be a girl.

Eating our way through our travels

One of the things Richard and I love best is the opportunity to taste and try new things.  And many of our favorite memories seem tied to the food.  The first fish and chips in London for example.  Those mashy peas they served on the side were something I'd never seen before.  And not especially something I wanted to see again in that instance! I  think I referenced another England memory in an earlier post regarding a Traditional Christmas Dinner.

We were gone over Thanksgiving that year, and when we returned my daughter immediately said we needed to do a Turkey Dinner.  Fortunately, in the airport on our way home, someone had left the very article I was waiting for but thought I would miss, the Sunday edition with a very detailed listing of an English Traditional Christmas Dinner!  So it was a final parting gift from our trip, and we immediately went about translating all the measurements into their American equivalents.  Then off to the store for supplies!  What else should you do when you're jet lagged but serve up an intricate large family meal?  Truly, this was perfect for Corinne and I, we both love to cook.

It was a good bird, having passed Thanksgiving we were forced to get a really expensive and organic turkey at our local Whole Foods, the only one that was thawed and not frozen.  But the best part was the Sticky Toffee Pudding!  So we were able to create an ambience and a taste experience for our traditional Thanksgiving holiday that reflected our time in England.  Things like that are awesome.

From Paris, we got our so called "Parisian" sandwiches.  French crusty bread, butter, good sliced cheese and soprasetta slices.  We mix it up and put brie on it sometimes as well.  It never fails to remind us of our stops in the train station at the bakery picking up a quick breakfast sandwich before heading into Paris from the suburbs.

In Lugano, we had amazing Beaujolais Nouveau, fresh tangerines and extraordinary cheeses and crackers in Switzerland near the Italian border.  We immediately came home and stocked up that wine, and every sip reminded us of that magical time in Switzerland.  Not to mention that I will never now eat a tangerine without triggering that serendipity moment with the owner of that cafe.

In Rome, it was Misto!  All of it and everything that was served to us one wonderful night at a neighborhood restaurant that catered to the locals.  Linguini with clam sauce and an appetizer of marinated vegetables and now I feel the urge to go find a really great recipe for both!

On a recent trip through New Orleans we got to try something called "Charbroiled Oysters".  Oh my!  Those were some of the best eating I've had in my life, and now I'll go find a way to recreate them as well.  The restaurant we were sent to was an amazing gem, Deanie's, that was Zagat rated, and if I'm very, very sweet to them, perhaps they'll share their recipe with me!

Sometimes it's the other way around and the food will inspire me to places for travel that I wouldn't ordinarily have on my bucket list.  For example, it turns out that I love Moroccan food.  I wouldn't have said Morocco was on my list of places to see, but because I love the food, I will most definitely consider traveling there.   I feel the same way about India and Thailand.  I love the food, so now I would consider traveling there.

And now, I want to see if I can sneak in a quick trip down to Switzerland when we go to Dublin later this year, because, somehow, I missed eating Raclette!

Redneck Riviera!

What an amazing return to a beloved location for both of our families!  My mom was able to join me and my husbands' family to go to Destin, FL.   Forty years ago, we had lived up the street in Fort Walton for two years while dad was working civil service for TRW.  I remember this white sand, in part because mom often spoke of it, but also because when we cleaned out my grandmother's home in Chicago seven years ago, we found a jar of it in her basement!   It now has a place of honor with some seashells in a crystal bowl she gifted to me at some point.  

Richard's famiy had vacationed here annually up until seven years ago, so this was a grand reunion for his side of the family as well.  His mom, husband Ben, father Poppy, sister's family and brother were able to be there as well as my two step kids. 

Crabbing, swimming, eating, walks on the beach, and even some spectacular shopping took place.  The  weather was extraordinary, we had sunny skies for almost the whole time, one sprinkle of rain, and lovely temps not yet in the 90's.  I remember the clouds every bit as much as I remember the ocean and waves.  As a child, I spent a lot of time looking at the shapes in the clouds, watching them change and shift into new shapes, and it's something I'd forgotten until we were back in humid country.  

I've lived my adult life in dry climates.

Arriving at night, we went straight to the beach.  The ever present and somehow relaxing sound of surf crashing greeted us.  Once we got the shopping done, we tried not to go out on the main drag.  The traffic rivals California now, and with only one road up and down the shoreline, it never ceases to be rush hour.

I loved my first true swim back in the Gulf!  Warm waves crashing over you, toes finding precious edges of buried shells or sand dollars, it was definitely like coming home for me.  I've experienced that type of beach too infrequently; most recently in Puerto Rico and Guymas San Carlos, and those were 10 and 30 years ago.  Barbados was a close third five years ago.  I'm clear I'm a water baby, and I want my water swimmable!

So I'm already planning next year's return to the beach of my youth, but this time, we want a less crowded place and fewer drives into town!

Packing, Packers, Pack Rats, Packed

We're big fans of Rick Steves.  His website had a ridiculous amount of information on how to pack for Europe.  It didn't seem at all possible to get by on the scant quantities he recommended and I ignored his suggestions completely in 2011 when we went for 16 days.  I packed all sorts of full outfits, scarves and jewelry, accessorizing completely and thoroughly for every possible occasion, from nightclubs to fine dining.   I filled every square inch of my wheeled suitcase.

I brought sink soap for washing clothes midway, an emergency sewing kit, an emergency medical kit, a European charger and a travel size extension outlet.  I had, zippered into the lining of my suitcase, copies of my passport, all credit card information, an extra prescription in case of theft and a photo copy of my Colorado drivers license.  Yes, I was a girl scout, why do you ask?

And to my credit, I followed one piece of Rick Steves advice.  I brought some older clothes that I could throw away on the trip to make room for souvenirs.  Brilliant suggestion.  Bye bye grey bulky sweater and cream bulky sweater!  Hello Venetian glass beaded jewelry.

Year two rolls around and in 2012 we purchased back packs.  And darned if I didn't get everything into that small bag.  I ditched the emergency kit and brought almost no toiletries.  I pared down to 3 pairs of pants.  And 7 days of socks and undies.  A down coat and a few shirts and we were on our way.  One pair of back up shoes.  And the only thing I regretted was bringing two cashmere sweaters instead of just one and not enough short sleeve shirts.  Wasn't expecting warm weather in November, but it's more apt to have been my personal airspace has a tendency to overheat from time to time.  It does that when you are in your 50's.

As Rick Steve's says, in Europe, you can buy your way out of any emergency.  Turns out they have shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste and clothing all over the continent.  It was easy to pick out toiletries in foriegn languages, they look just like they do here.  Even the brands are the same.  And traveling with a backpack is easier in many places with the rough paved cobblestones and small passageways in medieval cities.

On the way home this trip, we bought a ton of Swiss chocolate, Italian leather and silk scarves.  With no place to put it, we bought a new suitcase too.   Rick Steve's was right, it was easy!

I lived in three pairs of pants, a few shirts and a couple of sweaters and it worked out just fine.  We washed out clothes once in our 16 days.  At the end of the trip, I was still able to throw out some things, turned out my new socks already had holes in them.  We walked all over Europe and I even put a serious dent in the brand new shoes I took with me.  Never once did I use the backup shoes by the way, so next time, It'll just be one pair of uber comfortable, kick butt boots for me.

If you're wondering why you didn't get any Italian leather, it's because this year I bought for myself instead of everyone else.  You can go to Italy too you know....

When in Rome....

We've learned a lot on our travels about how others live, primarily because we took advantage of some non-traditional living arrangements.  Instead of hotels, we stayed in converted home to B&B's, a Paris apartment, a friend's Tuscan villa and in a New York apartment.

No one in Europe seems to own clothes dryers.  Dryers are energy hogs, and most folks hang their laundry to dry.  Drying racks were available in our Paris apartment, although with the constant rain it took two full days to dry everything out.   The hallways are frequently motion sensored to light up only when someone is in need of light.  Everyone uses energy efficient light bulbs as well.

In the Zurich hotel and airport, even the escalators are on power conserve and only move when you step onto them.

How frustrated they must be when they see how much energy Americans use?  They know climate change is real and keep wondering when the US will catch on.  Our oil and gas companies have done a masterful job of bullshitting the American public with the same PR machine that used to serve the tobacco industry.  If you still "question the science" of climate change, just like you may have "questioned the dangers of cigarettes", I invite you to watch the documentary "Chasing Ice".  No questions left after that one.

So after traveling these past several years, we had some decisions to make.  Our three cars are all ten years or older and we were debating the next steps.  One week only one was functional, the other two were at the garage for repairs.  One early option was to get a brand new Toyota Yaris.  We had narrowed the field to good gas mileage vehicles without being electric until they sort out the carbon footprint on those dang batteries.  They're on the cusp but not quite there.  Test driving was fun for awhile, and we tested the Smart car, the Fiat 500, the Nissan Rogue and the Toyota Yaris before deciding on the Yaris.

Then we talked again and made a conscious decision not to buy another fossil fuel vehicle.  Our next car will now be electric, and we are willing to wait to spend our money on a good electric car in a few years.  Other decisions and mindsets have changed for me as well.  I will walk sometimes to the grocery store if I only need one bag of items.  We live in a great walking neighborhood and I could get to my dentist and doctor if I owned a bike.   So we will invest in bikes this spring when the weather heats up.

I will wear my clothes more before laundering them.   We now pack one bag for Europe and buy another one over there to bring back souveneirs, but we can make do with three pairs of pants for 16 days.

I know from my work with civil engineers that one of the greatest energy costs we have is moving water.  So every ounce we can conserve we save dramatic amounts of energy.  We switched over to the newer bulbs in our lamps and fixtures.  We turn our thermostat down nightly (it's not programmable in our apartment).   Washing only full loads of both clothes and dishes.

We have an 11 year old, but are already thinking about our next "space".  I've found a great new trend called "tiny houses" and we are totally enrolled in being in a much smaller space.  I think the whole idea of having the big house that family can all come to for holidays is a waste of space the other 360 days of the year.  How about we rent a great big house for the holiday week?

Every time we go to Ikea my husband gets very enamored of having a smaller space.  "We can live in 540 square feet!  We can have a murphy bed in the living room for when Nicho comes (stepson lives with us alternating weeks)."  I think that's unrealistic for a soon to be teenage boy who will want his own space, but I'm open to a smaller 2 bedroom.

When we were in London, our hotel room had one foot on one side of a double bed smashed against a wall and my husband literally cleaned the shower stall when he turned around in it.   In Rome, the shower opening had both of us contorting to get into it. In Paris, our one bedroom apartment had the smallest kitchen I'd ever seen, until we visited New York.  That apartment also had a tiny kitchen.  I made do in both.  No problem.

Cities=small.  Countryside=large.  That has been our experience.  For us, we pick cities and small.   No offense to my Tuscan Villa owning friends:)

Big City at night

We decided together that the one and only Broadway show we would want to see was "Wicked".  All of us could enjoy it, it was family friendly fare, and I had loved the book long before the play had come out.  Nicho and Richard both loved the music and although Richard had seen it before with daughter Lindley, it was going to be my and Nicho's first time.   Nicho had his chance to dress up with tie and jacket and we rode the subway into the city with high anticipation.

There were so many restaurants to choose from that we hadn't made a reservation, preferring instead to be "in the moment" and see what showed up.  Less than a block from the Gershwin Theater we found our place, an upscale, modern restaurant with a soaring ceiling and a pricey menu.  Perfect.

Avoiding the pasta sauces, we dove into our dinner, snapping lots of shots throughout the meal, then making our way through the happy crowds to our destination.  The Gershwin is lovely, everything you would want in a theater and there truly isn't a bad seat in the house.  We climbed the stairs to our seats and settled in for the show.

And then it began.  The low rumbling, squirming movement of "what the hell did I eat"?  All through the fantastical and funny show it went.  My mostly silent suffering was undetected by Nicho and Richard.  We laughed, we cried, we applauded and we thoroughly enjoyed the fabulous cast of this year's "Wicked".  Once it was over, we were looking at a very long subway ride home, so off I went to the bathroom.  And the line was incredible.    Ladies, you know that feeling!  It's packed, don't dare take too long, need to wait!  Some relief?  Maybe later?  Oh no, we still have that subway ride.

I darted in and out and then down two flights of stairs, still clear I was not fit for a long subway ride.  By now Nicho was the proud owner of a ballcap with Wicked emblazoned on it.  Ah!  Another bathroom.  Empty.  Whew.

Stepping outside of the theater, one of the bicycle cabs was right up on the sidewalk outside of the Gershwin.  And a guard was uncerimoneously grabbing him by the collar and shoving him and his cab off the walkway.  The cabbie was smiling and apologizing and the guard was loud, New York, and unashamedly rough.  It was uncomfortable to watch.

Now I can tolerate the subway ride home.  So it's around 11PM and we pile into a packed car.  At the end of the car.  And the shuffling, pained faced and homeless man who followed us in kept staring at us, happily seated at the end of the car.  Standing, he asked if we would be on long.  Twice.  Richard replied "yes", but that we would happily give up our seat.  He declined.  After two interactions I stood up and walked to another section.   Nicho was right behind me, but Richard stayed put.

We had all noticed the smell, it was obvious he hadn't bathed in a very long time and further, that he had some kind of foot infection.  Later I found out he had eventually told Richard that his feet hurt.  I finally commented to Nicho how grateful we must be, we both knew where we were going to sleep tonight, that man didn't.  About this time I glanced at the other end of the car and realized we were now the interlopers.  Both ends of the car were being occupied by folks seeking shelter for the night in the heated subway cars.  The man at the other end had his shopping cart filled with belongings and looked to already be asleep.

Richard eventually joined us, after finally insisting that the man sit down and we rode quietly out to our apartment as the car emptied out like a ketchup bottle on the long the ride home.

On another night, we passed a highly intoxicated and possibly drugged young woman who was not rousing with her friends encouragement.  She was seated on the cold cement of the sidewalk and was unable to sit up without support.  Others nearby strongly suggested she needed medical help. Her short dress and no coat were no match for the chilly night and there was real concern about her condition.  We kept walking and five minutes later heard the sound of a siren, hopefully called to help her.

We never felt threatened or at risk for a mugging.  We actually felt very safe, and the only time I was uncomfortable (other than the gastroturbulence at Wicked!) was the night we went late to Times Square.  The packed humanity made it hard to stay together and I was just not a fan of the crowded area.  It was as bright as the Vegas strip too.  There were a number of street performers dressed in costumes and it reminded me of both Paris and Rome that way.  People paid to have their picture taken with them, it's how we ended up with Nicho and Super Mario.

My best memories of night are both the 30 Rock Christmas decorations and the lovely area of Little Italy.  We had dined in Chinatown one night and walking home, passed under the Christmas lights of Little Italy, with hawkers outside of each restaurant; "Come in!  We have the best food in Little Italy!". "Try our Tirimisu, it's the best in Little Italy!".  "Come in, we have reserved the best table for you!"

Another night, we dined at a bizarre little restaurant near our apartment.  Spur of the moment with no reservation, it was mostly empty.  Bad sign?  But it was warm and the food smelled good, so in we went.  It couldn't have been more than 20 feet square, including a kitchen that was open to the room.   It was decorated in gauzy white, hot as hell, and the service was sketchy but dramatic. When we asked about the wine, they only had one glass of one wine.  What we took to be a display of the four types they served were actually the only four bottles (all already opened) in the entire restaurant.  I have no recall of the food, but we did enjoy eavesdropping on what was very obviously a first date at the table next to us.  Dude likely wouldn't get a second date after that place.

I'm not afraid of heights, I'm not afraid of heights, I'm not....

On day two we purchased the New York Pass and got to work on seeing all the cool kid sights in the city.  We picked up our subway passes on day one, good for a full week.  Good on buses too, which came in handy a time or two.  First up, The Empire State building!

Richard immediately found an iPhone App for NY Subways that got us everywhere we needed to be.  It was a good addition to our maps apps, which we used for walking a ton as well.  We proudly used our Pass to get in and bought the extra stories to go up to the very top.  Like true, tourists, we listened to all the information on the building of this amazing landmark.  It was really interesting and I was astonished at the speed with which it went up.   Did you know that originally there was going to be a Dirigible landing platform on top of the building?

It's really, really a very fabulous view.

We strolled through the city in part to see all the fabulous Christmas decorations as well and there were plenty of those scattered throughout.

Then we traversed Grand Central Station!  We missed the whispering corner, I didn't find out about it until we got back:(  But the station itself is spectacular.   It's still beautiful 100 years later and it's amazing that it's still relevant, now more than ever.  Such vision and foresight for such a monumental infrastructure project that ended up providing us with Park Avenue!  Incredible place.  

Somewhere I had seen an article on "best Christmas Trees" and so as we moved through the city, we made a point of seeing several of these as well.  The Origami tree and the Museum of Natural History was one of my favorites, but the towering edifices of both Rockefeller Center and the Radio City Music Hall were close behind.

New York

New York state of mind

FAO Schwartz was amazing.  The toys, the movie "Big" piano, the Lego section and the dolls.  I was a little dismayed to see Toys R' Us logos on some items.  Looked it up and sure enough they were acquired in 2009.  Thankfully the FAO Schwartz brand ruled and it doesn't appear that they've changed the operation much.  The nice "palace guard" still meets you out front and offers picture opportunities.  

Richard went to see the iconic Apple Store right next door.  A big glass cube up top, then the store is underground.  But he was dismayed to discover that it is housed where his former favorite location is....the car museum under the GM building.  That was a dilemma for him.  He loves both, so that was a  bittersweet moment indeed.

We circled around to view Central Park, then found a subway and headed for our temporary home.  The nicest part of this was having a real home to go back to.  We loved the airbnb opportunity to live/work/play in a real New York neighborhood.  We're techie enough to classify wifi as a must have. Our newest bright idea, thanks to Richard, was to purchase a $99 apple TV for TRAVEL!  This was the smartest thing we've done.  We can plug into any TV and it's just like home now.

On the way home we hit a local market, picked up the makings for dinner and walked back to our new pad.  You should know I love to cook.  Really.  So the kitchen of a young single girl was our first challenge.  The good news was she had a small gas stove.  The bad news was that it was old.  It stunk.  We left windows open when we were gone because the CO2 alarm went off the first day when we didn't.  That, my friends, was a "real" New York experience, and we rolled with the punches:)

The next morning, I had bought coffee beans.  Whole.  Only to discover no grinder at her house.  Rather than gift her a new grinder, we gifted her the coffee beans instead.  Oh well.  Again, the proximity, the neighborhood, the local cafes and delis were still so juicy and awesome that we lived with the minor inconviences.  And honestly, no hotel would have been "better".  

The scariest part was when I had used the door's faceplate button to "lock" the door, then let it shut again with us inside, having forgotten mittens or a hat or something.  Unfortunately the lock was old enough there was no way to then GET OUT of the apartment!  No knob, no button, no key slot.  I was one sheet away from full FREAK when Richard calmly said "get a coat hanger".   And out we went.  Whew!

Our apartment had been "ikea'd out" as Richard said, but also there's a Crate & Barrel outlet she used a lot.  There was ingenious storage all over and we were surprised at how much there was for such a small space.  It's got us thinking alot of what's next for us and how much space we might need.

Fayson Lakes

The Bucket List; New York at Christmas

Anyone watch Christmas movies?  How many of you know FAO Schwartz?  What about ice skating at Rockefeller Center?  The Macy's Windows?  I keep travel alerts on Trip Advisor so when air fare gets ridiculous to my choices I can book tickets cheap.  We booked three of us from Denver to New York for under $550!  Months ago.

New York at Christmas time!  What a dream.  So shortly after Europe I wasn't sure until two weeks out if we would go at all.  So much to catch up on work wise.  Then we learned we'd only get $50 on our non refundable tickets if we cancelled, so we made it work after all.   I felt like a kid in a candy shop with a $50 dollar bill.   Richard couldn't stop talking about his childhood home in New Jersey that we also planned to visit.

First, where to stay?  We priced hotels.  NOT.  Turns out the every day high prices are twice that in December for the very reason we were going.  It's full.  New York is FULL in December.  So we went to plan B.  Friends had recommended JetSetter.com and airbnb.com.  We tried both.  Best results were on Airbnb.  We were able to search with a map and pinpoint the area we wanted to stay.  The second place Richard found was PERFECT!  He found a tiny one bedroom apartment in the lower eastside, near Little Italy and a subway line and walking distance to the infamous Katz's Deli, where the famous scene in "When Harry met Sally" was filmed.  The "I'll have what SHE's having" scene.  There was a couch for Nicho to sleep on too.

This was also a chance for Richard to revisit his childhood home.  He had a near idyllic childhood in an ancient home from the 1700's sitting right next to tiny "Fayson Lakes" in New Jersey.  They swam non stop all summer, and skied all winter long.  Imagine a school bus taking you daily up to the slopes.  Sure they were small hills, but still, what a life!

We landed at La Guardia at night and looked for a place for dinner.   The Buccanneer looked like the spot.  Later Richard said "How did you pick it?", and I shared my travel warrior secret, you look for a packed parking lot with nicer cars.  This was so perfectly New York.  The diner was well lit, had an extensive menu and included a wise cracking waitress who didn't hesitate to tell Richard where he should put his iPad during dinner!  Ahhh, New York!  Or in this case, Queens!  We then drove through the city to get the full effect on our way out to New Jersey.

Unfortunately, the tunnels were still being pumped out after Hurricane Sandy and only half the lanes were open so it took us awhile to get to Kennelon.   It's near Parsipanny.  We couldn't see much at night, so we left quickly and booked it to our hotel 10 miles away.

The next morning Richard and Nicho went in search of breakfast, we had slept beyond our hotel freebie and what a blessing that turned out to be!  They came back with the best darn bagel, lox and cream cheese I had ever had.  Nicho commented that the bagel was "chewy" and we explained THAT'S how they are SUPPOSED to be.  His first "real" bagel.

Then onto Kennelon.  Richard had a hard time recognizing roads.  Much had changed and he was very chagrined to determine it had been between 15 and 20 years since he'd been back.  There'd been a reunion some years ago but he had not attended.    The "big deli" and the "little deli" were identified for us, and he showed Nicho the path they'd run along to go pick things up at the "little deli" for his mom when they were younger.  The hill they'd sledded down to end slipping out onto the ice on the lake.  The starting blocks for the swim lanes on the lake.  And most importantly, the house!  And it's a lovey house.  We have an oil painting of it in our own house.   One of the trees in the painting is gone now.  Richard recalled the two 90 year old siblings who had come to visit once when Richard had lived there, saying "That's my tree, and that's yours!".  Time does pass.

It was reassuring that there was a yellow lab up on the porch.  That warmed Richard's heart.  It's his favorite breed of dog.  The house has it's own historical marker, it was truly built in the 1700's and had a stream of water running through the basement.  In Indian attacks they could barricade and survive because of that stream.  In more recent years it's been covered up.  The water wasn't safe to drink anymore.

Richard said those oft repeated words when going "home"; "It's smaller than I remembered it"!  The painting makes it look larger than life.  And that's how it was for those who lived there.  It was the gathering place, so near to the beach that it made all the sense in the world to be the party house.  And the 60's were pretty much "party years" for so many people, including Fayson Lakes.  At least one party goer was found asleep in a snow bank, thankfully discovered before freezing to death.   And no drownings that anyone in the family can recall.

Once a year they were all allowed to swim across the lake to the "little beach" on the other side.  With the help of the only motorized boat allowed, the lifeguard boat, dozens of kids would take to the water and swim a quarter mile out to the other side.  They camped on the shores overnight.  Richard recalled one time when his parents let he and his brother Lee camp overnight on the island in the middle.  Lee had a row boat and Richard had a small sail boat.

Fortunately for Fayson Lakes, being banned from the beach was enough of a horror to keep those kids in line.  There's a marker now for the wonderful woman who spent 40 years of her life checking those kids' ID badges, she passed away a decade ago but is still fondly remembered by Fayson Lakes.

All that took reminiscing took about two hours.  Then we had three more hours to kill before dinner with a childhood friend.  I asked Richard what there was to do and he realized a) Fayson Lakes is paradise for kids and b) there is not much to Kinnelon.  We hung out at the "mall".  Very loosely used term here, it included a karate studio, pizza parlor, hair salon and grocery store.  That was about 30 minutes, including the pizza lunch.  Then he asked how long to get to the ski resort, expecting we could squeak it into 3 hours round trip.

He was shocked when I discovered it's a mere 38 minute drive!  To his 12 year old self he was sure it was at least an hour.  So we drove up there and looked at the runs he learned to carve on.  Then back for dinner with his friend and our final night in Jersey.  Next stop, New York!

We were in heaven.  The lovely young woman who owned the place met us at the apartment and let us dump our bags early.  She walked us through everything and was a fabulous host.  Airbnb allows you to rent  your own space out and she was taking advantage of her trip to Puerto Rico to make a few bucks over the holidays.  

Day one was all about Nicho.  We headed to FAO Schwartz but bumped into Rockefeller Center, the tree, the ice skating rink and the enormous LEGO store!  Perfect start to our trip.

Returning Home; or back to "big car land"

It's always a bit of a shock to return to Denver after Europe.  I'm so aware of our "energy hog" profile in the world and understand well why they wish America would lead the way for green energy.  Climate change is not a myth and no one in Europe doubts it for a second.  We are the only civilized country in denial and it's being driven primarily from the same lobbyists and marketing nazis that brought you "we don't KNOW if cigarettes cause cancer" from the 60's to 80's.   Their new clients are Big Oil.  Happily raping our natural resources and then price gouging us since the 1960's.  Big Gov subsidises Big Oil.  

What was gratifying this time was the obvious movement of the light rail extension out to DIA.  That's a step in the right direciton Denver!  I love living in a city that has a plan, even though the state itself is still oil friendly and allowing fracking.  To hell with drinking water, let's get every last ounce of that oil out!

Ok, I digress.  But in the weeks that followed our return, I was still noticing how very large our cars are.  And our own cars were no exception.  I do have a Mini Cooper, ten years old now, but even that seemed big compared to European cars.  And with our 14 year old Jeep Cherokee in the shop more than not, it was time to start thinking about a newer car.  Or even maybe a new car.  Our seldom driven,  15 year old Jeep Wrangler is no bueno in cold weather unless we buy a new soft top.  The hard top leaks air like a seive.  It sits until summer.  And gas mileage is not pretty for Richard's long commutes.

As human beings, we are not "small".  We are "big", but we had fit comfortably into a couple of small rentals in Europe, so we went small car shopping.  We tried the following cars, with an eye out for four doors (Poppy and Nicho are frequently with us), but open to some newer two seater commuter cars.  Richard needs a car that'll get him economically up to Fort Collins and down to Colorado Springs.  And we want it to be reliable.  And we like camping in the mountains.  Ok, it quickly became obvious that my dream of a micro commuter car with great gas mileage may not work for our needs 100% of the time.  Two seaters were still on the list but fading fast.  And yes, using the Mini works for four, but getting in the backseat is really more like watching circus clowns get into a car.  It's a two door original.

Off we went to the Smart car dealer!  Turns out it's a Mercedes;/  I was shocked.  Who knew?  The bright side was it fit us both comfortably and is super affordable.  Reliability?  You can lease for $149 a month and then THEY have to deal with repairs.  And the Mercedes dealer picks you up, provides a loaner car and has amazing customer service.  Lease a car, not buy, never having to deal with repairs!  Option one.  But only room for two.  Gas mileage was good, but not outstanding.  It rode better on the highway than reviews suggested it would.  It meets 75% of our needs.  But the other 25% involves people we love and care about.  Hmmm.

Then the Nissan Juke.  Secretly Richard and I both thought this might be great.  Styling is like a micro version of a Murano, long a favorite of mine.  Richard liked the design detailing as well, mileage was good, there were four doors, and still room for a tent in the back.  And it's AWD.  This dealer was family friendly (I found myself concerned for flu germs in the pack of humanity).  Sadly, no loaner cars for any needed repairs, and no one was going to come pick us up for service.  Oh how quickly we get spoiled.  Gas mileage was reasonable, but the sticker was 10K over the Smart car.  Ouch.

Then an old favorite, the Fiat 500 or Cincacenta in Italian:)  We had test driven it two years ago and loved the zippiness.  It's styling is Italian for gosh sakes, and it seats four.  But only two doors again.  Truly, it's no better than the Mini and I prefer my Mini.  Maybe I can sacrifice my mini on the altar of Four Doors?

Back to the drawing board.  Richard develops a detailed spreadsheet with gas mileage, length of vehicle (parking ease is critical for him as he does all the errand running in a major metro area), number of doors and reliability or problems.  We are both on the internet non stop all evening looking at other options.  He's lobbying for a newer Jeep by now (he's owned 13 of them), but I am adamant, no more gas guzzlers.  We have a 4X4 Wrangler (21 years old) for camping and snow.  We go back to considering Honda, Hyundai, Nissan and Toyota.  The Famed four for reliability.  He calls me Friday to tell me he's found the car.  It's a Toyota Yaris!  And he thinks we can get financing!  And it's cheaper than the Nissan Juke by 10K!  Hallelujah!

We wait to hear on financing, although I am skeptical with the massive economic crash we both had four years ago.  But I'm loath to spend all our cash on a new car.  In the meantime, I start looking for used ones.  And to my surprise, they are not much less than the new ones!  Great news, they have terrific resale!  It's 10 to 12K for one with almost 100K milage and we can get a brand new one with a WARRANTY for 15K!  I'm so thrilled!  It makes financial sense not to take a 100K mileage hit!    This will WORK!  I didn't think this could happen and had resigned myself to never taking another depreciation hit ever, ever, ever, again.  Course I then realized all my new cars but one were American made.  Hmmm.

We qualify alright, for the exorbitant rates of a New York loan shark with double pinkie rings.  Thank you Guido Wells and Sonny Fargo for taking a risk on us at all, I promise to pay the thing off sooner than later to avoid lining the bloated pork bellies of the banksters.  And then we ask for just a smidgeon off the asking price.  Seriously, $200 dollars.  And they decline.  We're putting a third down, we have financing and they won't go down on a 2012 model year car that's been on their lot for six months?  So on the principal of the thing, we leave.   

I tell Richard they're sadly optimistic, it's early on a Saturday and they think they can still unload this baby.  But come Wednesday next week, we'll get a call.  

Now, we wait.