What's easy about The Big Easy?

I've discovered a few things in my five or six trips to New Orleans.

It's EASY to get ripped off if you're not paying attention.  Take the taxi driver from the airport. Please. All New Orleans airport taxi cabs are required to take credit cards. Just before we arrived at my hotel Wednesday night, my driver, a little too casually, informed me that he'd forgotten to tell me his credit card machine was down and so he could only take cash.  Uh huh.  My mama didn't raise a fool.  He'd rather have the cash than play the 3% on the credit card transaction.  As it turned out I was planning to pay cash anyway, so I didn't make a fuss.  Had I only had a credit card, however, we'd have had some words about that one. And I'd have won.

It's EASY to get inadequate directions to your destination. I don't know if they deliberately mislead tourists or what, but every time I ask a doorman or concierge or whomever, I never get quite ALL of the information that I need in order to successfully get where I'm going. So yesterday, following the directions I'd been given, I got on the wrong streetcar and had to be transferred to another line (the driver was very nice about it -- which was very refreshing).

It's EASY to overeat.  I've had some amazing meals here -- I don't think there is any bad food in the French Quarter restaurants. Every time I sit down to one of those scrumptious meals I swear I'm not going to eat too much. Every time I fail. Last night it was drum fish at Muriel's. To die for. I'm starting to waddle.

It's EASY to arrive at a meeting looking pretty disheveled. The weather turned nasty this morning and the winds today have been clocked at 45 m.p.h. coming off the river. The gusts roared up the streets of the French Quarter, so every time I crossed a side street as I traversed four blocks up Canal Street, my hair got blown to pieces. Fun.

I've stated New Orleans isn't my favorite city. It still isn't.

Next year we'll be having this same conference in Boston. I guess they are hoping that global warming will kick in and Boston won't be covered in its customary snow. I really like Boston. In the spring and the fall. Not in early January.

- Catherine

The Big Easy

I'm in New Orleans for perhaps the fifth or sixth time in my life -- for a conference, as always.   This is not my favorite city, but it is quite fascinating. (And I don't have a camera with me -- so no snaps this time around.)

The hotel that I chose is a few blocks farther than usual from the main conference action, but no matter where I stay, nothing changes the required pilgrimage to Crescent City Books on Chartres Street. I went there on my very first day at the earliest opportunity. As always, I had to pare down my numerous book selections to a combination that would cost $20 or less. 

Three luscious, out-of-print books later, I was a very happy camper.

As I always am when I leave Crescent City Books.

It's simply got the best selection of used books I've ever encountered in the nation.

And long may it live.

(I dare not go back before I leave New Orleans again because my willpower would be significantly weakened by a second visit.)

Today is a peerless day of blue skies, warm sunshine, and 66 degree weather. With a gentle breeze to top it all off. Very different from the 25 degrees and gloomy stuff that I left behind in Pocatello.

I had lunch at the famous Acme Oyster House (fried oysters for me - I'm not a huge fan of raw seafood). it was interesting to watch the oyster shuckers at work behind the oyster bar. I wish I could have understood their conversation, but it was a bit noisy in the restaurant and it's hard to follow the New Orleans accent if you're not used to it. After lunch I had a lovely ramble in the French Quarter, this time walking in areas more residential than commercial -- a welcome respite from the constant noise and activity of the area between Bourbon Street and the river. The houses were colorful and interesting, the streets quiet. The air was soft and lovely and I drank in every bit of Vitamin D that I could as I walked along.

And now, mightily refreshed, it's on to the next conference session.

Y'all have a great weekend now!

- Catherine

Just to give you something to look at

I've been in Canada this weekend, visiting my daughter (Number 4), her fiance (Number 4.5-to-be) and his family.  4.5-to-be's family live in one of the Toronto 'burbs, in a lovely house on a quiet street. They have been perfect hosts and it's been a terrific visit.

Because this is my first trip to the area, we spent the better part of one day of my visit in the city of Toronto, walking around, seeing the Christmas decorations, and drinking coffee from "Timmy's." (That's Tim Horton's for those of you non-Canadians).

Here is my favorite (favourite) picture from that day.

More to come!

- Catherine

A Golden Day

Tim is grieving the sudden loss of his much-loved uncle on Friday (June 18). I was grieving my mother that same day because it is her birthday.

June 18, 2010, wasn't one of our happiest days, as you can imagine.

On Saturday we took our sorrow out into nature, to the High Uintas mountain range of Utah. The beauty of God's creation was truly balm to our souls. We were accompanied by #4 and ftb, and it was ftb's first time up in the mountains of the American west. 

Packing a picnic lunch of cheese, apples and baked chicken, we drove up to Bald Mountain -- one of our favorite hikes in the Uintas.  With a summit of some 12,000 feet, Bald Mountain boasts some of the most wonderful views I've ever seen.  The steep, switchback trail can be tough at times, but the climb is worth it.

Alas, the hike was not possible this year.  Here's why:

Yep, that's a lot of snow for mid-June, even in the High Uintas. And even if the weather turns hot for the next month, it will remain pretty snowy on Bald Mountain. It will be a long while before a hike there is possible, if at all this summer.

So, we headed back down Mirror Lake Highway and stopped at the Provo River Falls. I'd been there briefly in 2001 with Tim, but there wasn't much time to explore on that occasion. This time we took our picnic and found a nice place to relax by the river.

Here we are just at the time we arrived.

See those falls? Magnificent!  And that ain't the half of it! We climbed up the hill by the falls, stopping on a nice big rock for our meal.

And then wandering farther upstream to see more of the falls.

 An farther still for even more falls:

The scenery was breathtaking and the sun was warm.  We had a grand afternoon together, wandering along the falls.

Here is my favorite picture of the day:

I'll be printing this one out and framing it -- a golden memory of our Golden Day.

- Catherine

Traveling to Omaha, Part II

Arrived in Omaha safely and made my way to the rental cars to pick up my reservation. The girl behind the counter said “I’ve got a Kia Rio for you. Whaddya think?” Unfortunately, I’d no idea WHAT to think about a Kia Rio, not having consciously seen one before, so I merely muttered that it would be fine. She handed me the key and said “Space H-51. Straight-back-on-your-right.” I wheeled around and noted the H row ….and that it started with space… #.... 1. Yep. Had to truck my luggage down past 50 spaces to get to my car. The good thing is that the car was parked so far out in the lot that it was next to the exit.

After a long day of sessions today, we were treated to a reception of finger foods. Not bad for a Holiday Inn, I thought. The foods were pretty tasty and were decoratively presented. And each offering sported a small tent card in front of it, identifying the contents of the chafing dish, which was quite helpful. Bacon-wrapped scallops, teriyaki chicken satays, cocktail shrimp, spring rolls with sweat chili sauce…. Wait! sweat? Yes, indeed. That’s what it said. Not “sweet chili sauce,” which I’m pretty sure is what they meant, but “sweat chili sauce.”

Someone on the banquet staff wasn’t paying attention.

I didn’t try it.

Tomorrow’s our last day of sessions and then I get to go home. Amen to that.

Traveling to Omaha, Part I

I’m sitting in the Idaho Falls airport, waiting for the first leg of my trip to Omaha. Yes, Omaha. I’ve never been there and, given the agenda of the conference I’m attending, I doubt I’ll have much chance to see anything except the airport and the Holiday Inn. But, to Omaha I am going.

The first leg is Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC). The Idaho Falls Regional Airpot (IDA) is a two-gate facility, with probably only one gate in use at any given moment. The security line opens 45 minutes before the flight and then shuts down again until the next flight.

I’m an old hand at airport security lines now. Remove the laptop and the cell phone, take off the shoes, the belt, the jacket or sweater or sweatshirt, etc. As Dave Barry once noted, it’s like some weird adult pajama party with people dressing and undressing at either end of the line.

I duly removed the all important plastic baggie of liquids and aerosols from my luggage and placed in the bin on top of my jacket. Gone are the days when they would mistake my asthma inhaler for some kind of weapon buried in my purse. Now it's all out in the open for easy identification.

Just as I walked through the security portal, however, I remembered that I’d left my 2.3 oz. bottle of moisturizer in my makeup bag – which was nestled inside the carry-on luggage that was currently making its way through the screener’s xray machine. Oh, shoot. But either they missed it or they recognized what it was and let it go, because no further searches were ordered and I didn’t have to explain or, worse yet, lose my little bottle of rather expensive moisturizer. I'm very grateful. Note to self: put the darn moisturizer in the baggie unless you want to risk your $20 purchase!

On this Sunday afternoon there is a football game thoughtfully provided on the TV screen in the gate (Gate 1). I opted instead to call my mother.

Mom is fine.

From the terminal you can see the planes as they land, and so far, the incoming flight hasn’t landed. So we don’t have a plane to get on at the moment even though it is only 20 minutes until flight time. I fervently hope it arrives soon because I have only 30 minutes in Salt Lake for my connection to the Omaha flight. Granted, the flights will arrive and depart from the same terminal in SLC, but, still, it’s a bit nerve wracking to run that close.

I will need time in SLC Int'l in order to hunt down some food for the next leg of my trip because, as usual, there will be no food service available on the flight – just snacks and beverages. Sad that you can fly most of the day and never be served anything close to a meal – or even have enough time to actually find food when you’re in between connections. A person could starve to death in this country just trying to get from Point A to Point C.

(to be continued)

What I Did On My Summer Vacation.....

It’s been five days since we returned home, and already the memories are starting to fade a little as everyday life ramps back up to normal. But the ‘battery recharged’ feeling really lives on. What a great time we had this year, the three of us and the dog!

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Memories:

Still mornings, with a hot sun, cool mountain air, and a lake so clear you could see the fish on the bottom at 15 feet or deeper.

Waking up at whatever time we wanted to, no schedule all day long.

Floating around on the water, cozily ensconced in my river tube.

My two best guys out in the raft, our dog sometimes with them, exploring the lake.

Sitting in my chair on shore watching storm clouds roll up through the valley.

Seeing the Bald Eagle fly overhead, bringing home a fish.

Watching the Ospreys fly back and forth along the valley wall (often in pairs), hunting for their next meal.

Visiting with our good friends, Tom and Marilee.

Evening movie marathons in our camper, the three of us huddled around a little 7-inch screen.

No cell phone service and no internet access.

Driving 20 miles one day to get internet access so I could complete a proposal on deadline (bleah! but I had the consolation of knowing that my project director had to do the very same thing: drive 20 miles from her own lake vacation for the same unexpected deadline.)

Warm days and cool nights.

A summer thunderstorm that poured rain over the valley one afternoon.

The gentle sunshine and crystal clear air after the thunderstorm, as if the earth had been cleansed just for us.

Crawdad hunting, and then (yuck) crawdad cooking!

A renewed and welcome sense of the wonder (and fun) of raising a child to adulthood.

The “Black Dog Convention” that seemed to be taking place at the campground while we were there (no less than a half-dozen black lab or lab-type dogs were in the campground by Friday).

Prowling the lakeshore in search of beautiful wildflowers to photograph.

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Our photos are at http://picasaweb.google.com/cathering/SummerVacation2008 . Can't wait for next summer!!!