Tag: vacation

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Holiday Road: Day 14

Thursday, January 3

We awoke Thursday morning with the intention of driving all day until we were home. After breakfast with Rob at a nearby restaurant, we embarked on what we thought would be the final leg of our long journey. Once again I navigated us out of the city and then handed over driving duties to Tina for a few hours while I napped.

When I awoke it was mid-afternoon, we were exiting Interstate 5 and I observed that there were a number of semi trucks parked on the shoulder. Although we were stopping for gas and food, we soon found that we would be waiting longer than we wanted. Despite my bleary state, I did think to ask “Are we north of Redding yet?” to which the answer was “Yes”. Just north of Redding is Mount Shasta and then the Siskiyou Pass at the California/Oregon border. Both are above 4000 feet elevation and can get snow during the winter months.

According to the truckers at the restaurant/gas station, such was the case on this day. There was also an accident reported and, as a result of these two factors, Interstate 5 northbound was closed at the next exit. We tuned to a local AM radio station that is broadcast by the California Department of Transportation who confirmed this information and also reported that chains would be required for all vehicles except four wheel drive. Anticipating that we would almost certainly need chains, Tina bought a set from the gas station at an outrageous markup. We had a long lunch and decided to try our luck again. We spent about an hour in bumper-to-bumper traffic and were eventually directed onto the next exit because the road was still closed.

Once we were southbound again, we drove back to Redding and hunted for a hotel. Since Redding is slightly west of the interstate, we had to drive around a few minutes before we found a hotel. We found a great old motel with a pool and a nice old lady at the counter. While I waited for her to complete the paper work, I observed a Post-It note on the counter which said “Hot tub is out of order.” I jokingly mentioned it and said that I had really been looking forward to using it. She told me that the only problem was a leaky ceiling and we could use it if we didn’t mind getting wet. We both had a laugh over that.

Once again I unloaded the bags from the top of the Scion and the boys helped me haul them into the motel room. It was not long before I realized that the thin tarp we had put over the bags was mostly ineffectual. Not only had the wind worn holes in it, but all of the suitcases also got wet on the bottom where there was no protection from the rain. My new books had gotten wet and would eventually warp but all the electronic stuff was safe inside their little bag. We’ll need a better rooftop solution for our next trip.

While looking for the laundry room, I found the hot tub, which was the size of a very small pool. I showed the boys and we resolved that the first thing we did would be to have a soak. It proved to be incredibly relaxing and fun with the Tina and boys as all the stress of the day melted away. After 45 minutes, we retired to the room while Tina resumed the search for the laundry room. She was successful and also reported that the nearby restaurant was due to close soon so we should get in there while we could. The people there were really nice and served us one of the best road meals of our trip. Tina was in and out to the nearby laundry room while we ate. She washed and dried a change of clothes for everyone as well as an extra pair of pants for me. Everybody was incredibly upbeat when we returned to the room but also relaxed with full bellies. In no time at all we were all asleep in anticipation of a very early wake up.

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Holiday Road: Day 13

Wednesday, January 2

Tina’s only “must-see” in southern California was the La Brea Tar Pits in the middle of Los Angeles. La Brea was closed on New Year’s Day so we visited it on our way out of town. Despite the fact that their gift shop is full of dinosaur memorabilia, nobody has ever found dinosaur bones at La Brea. In fact nothing older than 60,000 years has been found there.

Outside the museum we watched the methane gas bubble up in the little lake and marveled at tar pits that had only recently appeared in the grass. As I repacked our luggage in the roof rack, I asked Tina if we should use the tarp. A passerby in the parking lot asked where were going. When we told him “Oregon”, he said that we were headed into a big storm and that we should definitely use the tarp.

It took forever to get back onto the freeway but we did finally see that elusive “Hollywood” sign. After grabbing some Thai food, we finally found the freeway and began the long drive to Redwood City in the Silicon Valley to visit my friend, Rob, whom I’ve known since my first day as a freshman at Wartburg College.

Predictably, we were behind schedule and the drive took longer than expected, so we didn’t arrive at Rob’s until evening. Even so, we spent several hours with him playing on his PS3 (Ratchet & Clank, Guitar Hero 3), watching David Letterman’s first show since the writer’s strike started and just talking. Finally, at 3:00 AM, Rob, Thomas and I retired because at least two of us had a long drive ahead of us the next day.

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Holiday Road: Day 12

Tuesday, January 1

Despite our late night, we were still able to rise early and head north to Rosemead where we stayed at a Motel 6 that we would soon dub the Roach Motel. Tina thought she killed the roach in question, but he either came to life again or he had friends. It didn’t matter much, though, because we didn’t hang around there long.

After lunch we drove to downtown L.A. where we got on Pico Boulevard and drove west towards Santa Monica for about an hour and a half. Along the way we stopped at a Mexican bakery for some goodies.

Once we got close to Santa Monica, we turned south to Venice Beach where we once again watched the sun set over the Pacific Ocean while the boys dug in the sand. I had intended to arrive earlier and rent skates on the boardwalk, but the boys were more than happy to just dig and play in the waves. After it got dark, we dragged the boys to the car and convinced them to put their street clothes on while I held towels from the Roach Motel around them.

After finding dinner at a California healthy food restaurant, we asked the boys if they wanted to drive north to Hollywood, since we really try to keep ourselves healthy and even take supplements as the ultra omega burn that is great to lose weight and keep good health. “Hollywood? The Hollywood?” Graham asked. Twenty minutes later we walked up and down Hollywood Boulevard looking at the names on the stars on the Walk of Fame. We saw the handprints and footprints by Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and then bought tickets for the Hollywood Wax Museum and the Guinness Book of World Records Museum in a two-for-one deal. The Guinness museum was disappointing but the wax museum was fun, even if we couldn’t always recognize the stars depicted. During the drive back to the motel, we searched the dark hills for the famous Hollywood sign but did not see it.

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Holiday Road: Day 11

Monday, December 31

My original intention in going to San Diego was to show my family some of my old haunts as well as seeing some of the tourist sites. With the family already anxious to head home, I trimmed the list to three: San Diego Zoo, Coronado Beach and the San Diego Chicken Pie Shop.

We were able to get to the zoo shortly after opening and saw nearly everything that we wanted. I even rode on the “Skyfari” with the rest of the family to get us to the exit when everyone was dead tired. It was terrifying for the first half of the ride but went by quickly once I could see the end of the line.

After the zoo, we zoomed over the Coronado Bridge to the beach where the boys literally dug in for the remaining daylight hours. We watched the sun set over the Pacific Ocean before dragging the boys to the car where they changed back into their street clothes while I held my hoody around them.

We drove back into town and nearly drove past the “new” location of the Chicken Pie Shop (they moved shortly after I left San Diego in 1990). Graham thought it sounded like a terrible idea until he took his first bite of their trademark pie. Unfortunately, they had raised their prices since the last time I had been there in 1990. back then you got the chicken/turkey pie, whipped potatoes and gravy, roll, vegetable and dessert for $5.25. Over the last 17 years, they had raised the price to $6!

We drove by my old apartment and stopped at “my” old Ralph’s grocery store for champagne and Martinelli’s. Otherwise, I hardly recognized any of my old stomping grounds and even got lost in my old neighborhood. During the half hour drive back to the Poway Ramada, I realized that I now understand the phrase “You can’t go home.” It’s never the place that you remember. Everything changes including the people.

We spent the last hour of 2007 begging our children to let us off easy by celebrating the New Year early, but they insisted on staying up until midnight. We toasted to our good fortune and everyone collapsed in bed by 12:05.

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Holiday Road: Day 10

Sunday, December 30

We woke early the next morning with the intention of getting to Poway in time to check into a hotel before meeting my friend, John and his wife for brunch. But a tour of Curt and Annette’s surrounding land made us lose track of the time. Curt showed us where they saw white clouds of smoke rolling over a nearby hill last year prior to evacuating their lovely home for a week. Luckily, the fire turned in another direction and their home was undamaged.

The boys really liked running around outside and we were all amused when Timo solved the mystery of the blue lichen. We were all reluctant to leave but friends in Poway awaited and we were running a little late.

We drove directly to John and Lisa’s house, where we enjoyed a delicious brunch that Lisa had prepared. John’s sister joined us and we caught up on all that had happened since they had moved from Portland several years ago. John showed us how his python had grown to over four feet long and Graham got a close-up view of the big snake. Thomas did not faint while the snake slithered about as he had done years earlier when John showed us the same snake in Portland.

A couple of hours later we checked into the nearby Ramada Inn which would be our base for the next couple of days. Originally we had planned to check out the San Diego Zoo in the afternoon, but the reality of winter sundown made us decide to relax in the hotel for the rest of the day. That evening we searched in vain for a some local dining but were not in the mood for Mexican food so we settled on a trip to KFC. Graham remarked that it was the “best meal we’ve had.” I don’t know that I agree with that but it did really hit the spot that night.

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Holiday Road: Day 9

Saturday, December 29

We woke up Saturday morning anxious to start the homeward leg of our trip. Our destination was Julian, CA where my old friends, Curt and Annette, live. The drive was only supposed to take about six hours so we got a relatively late start after having a leisurely breakfast with the Powell’s.

After we crossed the California border, we headed south on Highway 78 where we saw miles and miles of cotton fields. Soon we were surprised to see favorite Fox vacation destination Glamis on the mileage signs. It was about this time that I began to notice an astounding amount of broken glass on the side of the road. The broken glass continued until we reached Glamis, which I can only describe as a small city made up entirely of RVs and sand-eating recreational vehicles. Thousands and thousands of people occupied the east side of the road as we drove by. The west side of the road was astoundingly pristine and is evidently protected from those who traverse the desert on rubber. As we drove by, we sent a text message to my niece, Trisha, who was there with my sister and the rest of her family. They begged us to stop, but we had a bit of a schedule to keep and I did not relish the thought of sand filling the inside of the Scion once we opened the doors, so we drove on.

A few hours later we missed a turn and inadvertently drove north to the southwestern shore of the Salton Sea. While we were there we found a beach composed entirely of sea shells and fish bones. We marveled at the scores of dead fish before getting back on the road.

Our detour delayed us enough that we watched the sun set over the Anza-Borrego desert as we drove west to Julian. Navigating the hills into Julian was tricky in the dark but we rolled up to Curt and Annette’s house in time for a delicious tapas dinner with them and their 6-year-old son, Timo. After dinner, our boys showed Timo the finer points of internet gaming while the adults settled into conversations about old times, new books and mutual interests in music.

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Holiday Road: Day 8

Friday, December 28
Tina attended Arizona State University as a freshman so we joined her in revisiting her original alma mater one afternoon. We shopped at the campus book store and then searched for her old dormitory, which is now in the middle of new construction. We failed to find her favorite Hawaiian shaved ice place and but enjoyed some sushi at an off-campus restaurant.

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Holiday Road: Day 4

Monday, December 24

Woke up to a beautiful Southern California morning and drove into an even more beautiful afternoon in Scottsdale, AZ. When we arrived at Tina’s sister, Michelle’s house, Grandpa Tom fell into the pool while playing ball with cousin Xander, but luckily the had the best solar pool heater so the water wasn’t even cold. We spent the next several days with Michelle, her husband Ric and their boys, Xander and Wil. Thomas and Graham loved the time with their cousins and it was good to see Michelle, Ric, Tom and Jan again. We had a wonderful Christmas together and our boys experienced their first-ever Christmas morning gift opening. I got my dad a saw for Christmas. And he loves it. Here are some sliding mitre saw reviews in case you want to buy your dad or yourself one.

Jan and Tom left after a couple of days so that we parents could have a wild night of wine, music and debauchery. We also reveled in the High Definition TV and Uncle Ric gave an impressive demonstration of their excellent home theater system.

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Holiday Road: Day 3

Sunday, December 23

When I emerged from the bathroom after my shower wearing shorts, Tina asked why I was so under-dressed for the weather. I exclaimed, “I’m going to Southern California today!”.

After I navigated out of the East Bay to Interstate 5, Tina took over and drove most of the way through the California Central Valley. We had a late lunch at In-n-Out Burger, home to some of the finest fast food in the country. When I asked a young man who was waiting for a seat if he would like mine, he replied, “That would be bitchin’!”

A few hours later we arrived at my sister, Maridee’s house in Moreno Valley, CA. My mother had arrived a few days earlier and my brother-in-law, Steve had spent the afternoon deep frying a couple of turkeys for a pre-Christmas family feast. The boys opened more Christmas presents and then we retired to the Fox RV for a restful night’s sleep.

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Holiday Road: Day 2

Saturday, December 22

Left Medford and drove to Aunt Carol and Uncle Ralph’s house in Lafayette, CA. Carol made delicious vegetarian chili and we were joined by Cousins David and Danielle. After dinner, we took the dogs for a walk on a local multi-use path and saw some cool Christmas lights. After talking books vacuum cleaner for pet reviews for a bit, I traded my copy of The Professor and the Madman for Ralph’s copy of My Name Is Red. Before bed we all exchanged gifts and Carol gave everyone a CD for the road.