Linked In

Howdy all,

I have signed up on Linked In.



If you have not already signed up it seems to be a very useful site to keep track of contacts. :-)

Check it out!
Leslie

*Doing the Happy Dance!*

I got a job! GOT A JOB! Ok so the first couple of months after I left WK was fun. I thoroughly enjoyed my summer but over the past month life has been dress up interviews in uncomfortable shoes. So anyway Monday this week my recruiter calls me and says "I have the perfect job for you!" I sigh because I have heard this before, I want to believe it is true but I am tired. So Tuesday morning I go into the recruiters office to meet with Christa. I like her immediately. She is very personable and I just feel like we clicked. I knew she had 4 interviews lined up so I leave the interview with hope but feeling like this is another job that I will be passed over for. I get a call later in the afternoon and the recruiter wants to meet with me Wed. and I am scheduled for a 2nd interview on Thursday to meet some of the people in the office. I am now EXCITED! I have not even been called back by half the people I have interviewed with (If you are reading this and you set up an interview with someone for a job PLEASE have the courtesy to call them back even if it's with bad news.)

I go into to meet with the recruiter Wednesday and she tells me Christa narrowed it down to 2 of us. We talk a bit more and I am stoked. So this morning (I know I am rambling and that this post is not cohesive) I go in to interview again. I leave with a skip in my step. I barely walk in the door to my apt and the call comes that I have the job. I am still waiting for some of the details but they offered me MORE money then I had intitially agreed to. LMAO... what kind of a company pays you MORE then you ask? Well I know WizKids wouldn't.... no raises in well over a year.... benefits cut beyond recognition. It is sad that with all the benefits cut in the last year I was there I actually made LESS then I did when I started 3 years before.

Well I am excited. So the company is a Real Estate Appraisers office. I have meet with Appraisers before at Fidelity and they are very similar kinds of people to title exaiminers. The company has been around since 1982 but is very small. 18 people total. I am very much looking forward to diving into this new challenge. Meeting new people and just being able to work again.

Thank you everyone for your support over the past few months. *happy dancing around my house!*

What Have I Been Up To????

Hi all,





I have been away for a while spending time figuring out what I want to do and who I am. It's quite a thing having time to be. I am now spending time looking for a job. I want a place where it will be right for me so it is taking more time then I anticipated. In the mean time Bill and I went by Uncle's games to pick up a puzzle. There sitting in the window is THE WORLDS LARGEST PUZZLE. http://www.worldslargestpuzzle.com/ This thing is 24,000 pieces, prior to it's release in March 2007 the largest puzzle was 18,000 pieces. So Bill and I agree we must attempt this thing. The puzzle comes in 4 sections. Section 1 is Hot air balloons and lots and lots of fish. LOL

So on Sunday, August 19, 2007 we went down to the store and picked it up. Lex was home from school for the weekend so we started sorting the first section. I will keep you updating as we go through it. It's been great so far. :-) Although Bill thinks I am crazy for wanting to do it. :-)

More soon.

Leslie

Hilarious Harry Potter Song **NO SPOILERS**

Annoyed that you don't have your copy yet? Scared of what might happen? Sad that the whole thing is ending? Want to laugh at the pleas of a desperate Harry Potter nerd? Then this is the song for you!

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It's Official! We Saved Jericho!

Fans of the show rejoice as CBS has officially announced Jericho's return for 7 episodes during midseason 07-08. Apparently, sending 25 tons of nuts to CBS HQ is a pretty effective message!



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Jericho Fans Go Nuts Online | WebProNews

Fans of CBS's Jericho are waging a grassroots campaign against the network for cancelling their favorite Wednesday night drama. They're shipping nuts - by the thousands of pounds - to CBS network execs. Scrappy Internet firm NutsOnline.com is turning the outrage into a group campaign by offering couch potato activists a way to pool their funds.



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Nuts For Jericho

NUTS! Save Jericho! Jericho fans unite. In addition to sending individual orders to CBS programming executives, as a Jericho fan you can now contribute money to massive shipments of nuts. NutsOnline will do our part by pooling monies and supplying nuts at a steep discount! At the end of each day we will tally dollars collected and ship out huge qua



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Jericho lives on... maybe?

Ok so it is rare that I feel passionate enough about a TV show to make sure I am home to watch it each week. I have DVR so I honestly couldn't even tell you what time half the shows I watch are on or even some of them what channel. Jericho was a rare show. So I signed up for details on the www.jericholives.com website to find out about any future plans CBS might have for the show in hopes that they might finish it off with a mini-series or something. What I have seen in the last week is a very organized group of very determined (and sometimes a little scary) people. LOL

Take this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5ImUmrOSw0

for example. This is so funny I sat and laughed for a good half an hour. (yes I can be easily entertained) If you search you tube there is an entire movement to save this show. Not to mention the NUTS campaign where they are suggesting people send nuts to the CBS Mailroom to show support for the show. People have ordered SO many nuts from nutsonline.com that they have put up a blurb on their home page about the Save Jericho NUTS Campaign.

I read on the site that to date there have been over 1200 nuts shipped off to the CBS staff... boy I sure hope no one onsight is allergic. LOL to support Jericho go to the website and sign off on the petition. It's a great show and really deserves an additional season in spite of the low ratings it might have received (those couldn't have anything to do with it being put up against Dancing with the Stars and American Idol could it?!?!?)

Enjoy!

Does CBS actually have their heads up their asses?! Oh why yes they do.

Does CBS actually have their heads up their asses?! Oh why yes they do.

Over the past year I have found myself leaning more and more away from live TV. I have signed up for a NetFlix account and am renting DVDs of TV shows that are now off the air that I didn’t have time (or the channel) to catch when it was on. Six Feet Under and Dead Like Me are my 2 recent obsessions. This past season was one of the best seasons on TV that I have seen in years.

Between Jericho, Heroes & Men in Trees I finally regained hope that the networks were not completely useless. As I watched Jericho and Heroes and had these gynormous pauses between 6 and 8 weeks with no re-runs or new episodes I became annoyed… then early this year ABC plays 1 episode of Men in Trees and then NOTHING… no updates on their website… no information to say the show was ever coming back. So this past week was the season finale of Jericho. I was so excited at the end because I thought for SURE with this excellent writing the show would have to be back. Now I find out that CBS decision makers are complete and udder idiots. They have cancelled this well choreographed show and what will they put in its place? Probably some POS reality show.

On a good note Heroes and Men in Trees have been renewed for next season and in the case of Men in Trees they will be adding the END of this season on to next season. Whew…. At least there is some small hope. All this has made me start to think… why do I bother watching these shows live when I can simply rent the season DVDs a few months after the show is over and AFTER I know if it will have a new season? I mean if I had known Jericho would have been cancelled I think I would have trashed the show earlier if I had bothered watching it at all.
It’s nice to have the water cooler shows… you know the ones that people get excited about and you have to discuss over lunch the next day but when it comes to the end of the season and there is a great cliff hanger and no resolution… I just feel like a woman with a quick-draw boyfriend…. Not something I am accustomed to feeling. LOL

Hiro Speaks

So the Seattle Times did an interview with the actor that plays Hiro from the TV show Heroes. I read this quote as the last thing he said in the interview and it kinda hit the nail on the head of what I think being a geek is.

Being a geek is a great thing. I think we're all geeks. Being a geek means you're passionate about something and that defines your uniqueness. I would rather be passionate about something than be apathetic about everything.

Tag in the Seam

Are you a geek? Do you date a geek? Are you a female geek? I know we are pretty rare. I recently had a reference from a good friend to listen to this podcast, Tag in the Seam. I decided to give it a shot since my favorite morning radio guy had been off the air for more than a week and I desperately needed something fun to listen to on my way in to the office. So I cranked it up on my iPod and downloaded a couple early episodes. The one that caught my eye was “Survival Guide to dating a Geek” I popped this little hour long episode onto my iPod and turned it on while I waited for the bus to take me to work. By the time I got onto the bus I was giggling. As more and more people piled on to the bus at each stop I began chuckling out loud much to my bus companions’ amusement. Before I exited the bus I was laughing out loud and had tears streaming down my face. Tag in the Seam is a podcast done by this woman in Atlanta. She is a geek and she dates a geek and as she speaks I find myself nodding my head in agreement with nearly everything she has to say. She has a fantastic sense of humor and I think the best parts of her show have been when she has randomly recorded times she is sitting around talking with friends. She is very real and in this day in age that is so common. Please take a few minutes out of your day and go check her out. If you have iTunes and you listen to podcasts right on there without having to even own an iPod.

Go on! Check it out! I promise you won’t regret it! Here is the tag:
This is a show by real women about real woman for real women.
Everything from breast cancer to skin care.
DynamicOutspokenSeriousPlayfulControversial…
The first podcast ever for real women.
http://tagintheseam.mat9.com/

And honestly I think men may very well enjoy her more then we women do. LOL

Star Wars Pocketmodels

I entered into geekdom at a fairly young age. My older brother is probably much to blame but so was my monster crush on Han Solo. I grew up in the early 80s with all the Star Wars loving geeks. I collected the figures and played with them. We had one of the giant storage Vader’s to put all the figures in. We had lunch boxes and Tie Fighters.

So when I accepted a job with a game company I had hopes in the back of my mind that maybe someday I could possibly work with Lucasarts and be a small part of Star Wars. When a competitor got the license for the miniature game I was sad and realized it would be unlikely I would be able to be involved with the company and so my hopes were put on the back burner… that is until the middle of last year.

I work for WizKids, Inc. makers of HeroClix and Pirates of the Spanish Main games. We are a small company and we have had our ups and downs but things are majorly on the way UP!
We recently announced that in June of this year we will be releasing our Star Wars Pocketmodels game. I have played it and am very very very very very excited. Here is a link to see a little about the game:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUXCVOUU8DY

If you are interested in the game (and if you are still reading I am REALLY hoping you are) keep an eye on our website: http://www.wizkidsgames.com/ as we will be announcing more cool stuff to come!
*~*Leslie’s Doing the happy dance!*~*

Why Offset With NativeEnergy

So I was reading an article about how traveling causes harm to the places we travel to due to the emissions from the car. This is something I was aware of but I was NOT aware that there are programs that can help each of us off set the pollutants we produce.

Some people feel the offset programs are just a way for people to try and justify their over abundant use of our environment. My perspective as with most things is “If what they are doing is helping why do we have to pay so much attention to their motives?” If a person decides to give a $1000 to a charity because they feel guilty about something they did what harm is it? *sigh* The people the charity is there for still benefit. Maybe that person shouldn’t have done the “bad” thing he/she did but regardless the donation helps.

Anyway, So I found this website:

http://www.nativeenergy.com/why_offset.html

I am going to look into the benefits these programs provide and I am considering trying to do my part to heal the polution I am responsible for.

Final Magnet Count

Ok so it took me over a week to make sure I had all the magnets together and even then I missed one. LOL

Total Magnet Count: 58.

Once I have them up on the fridge I will take a few individual shots. Any magnet you want to see closer up? let me know. :-) I am very pleases with the collection.

This was fun...

So I was surfing around and found this cute little survey. I think it has me pegged. LOL

Your Travel Personality Is: The Adventurer

For you, travel is how you learn about the world. And you like to learn the stuff that's not in guidebooks.You truly have wanderlust. When you're not traveling, you're dreaming about where you'll go next.And your travels are truly legendary - they leave you with stories you'll be telling for the rest of your life!

What's" Your Travel Personality?

Home Again Home Again Jiggedity Jig

So I am home again. Here is the final count 11 States, 6 National Parks/Forests and a ton of fun. I am a little sad that the Utah sign did not turn out as well as the rest.

Utah:

Back to work and home to my kitties. They seem to have missed me and I will bring them some fish from Sushiland when I get back from dinner.

Hope you enjoyed following along on the trip. *smile* I had fun blogging it for everyone.

Hmm maybe I will try and keep up with my blog now that I am used to posting... hehe we will see...

Saturday to Portland

It's Saturday and while we are going to be glad to be home we are both not looking forward to Monday Morning. We head out from our hotel room later then planned and have breakfast at this nice little bakery in town, than hit the road headed up the coast. It is very overcast today and as the forecasters said, it is raining and cold. The coast is covered in fog and so I was not able to get much in the way of pictures. I was able to add a couple more magnets to my collection for the Oregon portion of the trip.

We will be driving most of the day and so we put on more of the music we have on the iPod. I have about 20 songs about "Home" that I put on. (I don’t think I mentioned that I had songs loaded for each state we passed through and tried to play them when we were in the area. My favorite selection was Brad Paisley's "Celebrity" when we drove through Beverly Hills which actually I hadn't planned but just kinda happened. LOL)

I am a little tired today but I think it's mostly because of the dreary weather. Oh and I bought a California Lotto ticket when we passed through so wish me good luck! Hehe

The weather starts to clear as we get further from the coast. It's about 4 pm and it looks like we will make Portland before 6. That will make it an easy 3 hours of driving tomorrow to make it home.

Leaving California!

Last night we stayed in Fortuna. (wasn't that the name of the town in Pirates of the Caribbean where all the pirates lived?) It was a lucky thing since there happened to be a Safeway there and we needed more water and wanted to grab stuff to make lunch for a little picnic in the Redwoods.

Well if you are planning to go to the Redwoods National Park you should know something. If you want to drive the "Avenue of the Giants" Its not actually in the National Park but on another property about an hour and a half SOUTH. We had already passed it and decided to give up on it and just hike the trails in the National Park. We spend a few hours hiking around (and eating our Sports Jelly Bellies which I personally do not like but Bill liked them and finished them off) and taking lots of pictures. It was an amazing time.

I sat for a bit on a bench in the woods and just listen. It is amazing the sounds of the different parks. Arches was deafeningly quiet. There are no birds, no bugs, no trees for wind to blow through. The painted desert was quiet but not the deafeningly quiet due to the rolling hills. The Grand Canyon is full of people noise and some birds. I much prefer the Redwoods. Full of noises and yet absent at the same time. There was no airplanes or cars or radios booming with bad music. There were birds and buzzing insects and wind rustling through leaves. There was a small creek on one of our hikes that bubbled and splashed. I could sit here for hours and just listen to the sounds. A man walks by oblivious to the wonder around him while he talks on his cell phone about work his young daughter jogs along beside him desperate to keep up but she looks disappointed that she can't stop and look around. Why do people like this bother to come to this beautiful place? He doesn't seem to comprehend the beauty around him just wants to check something off some imaginary list of things to do. Redwood National Park is not a thing to do. It is a place to experience. I feel so at home in forests. Arches, Painted Desert, Petroglyphs, Grand Canyons are all amazing and terrific things to experience but forests call me. I believe in a former life I must have been a squirrel or some other woodland creature. I love the sights, sounds and peace that forests bring. The sign says that Redwoods thrive in High Humidity and Moderate Temperatures… I think I have a lot in common with these trees.

One of the people working at the visitor center suggested we stop by the Klamath River Overlook. We head out to the overlook and when we arrive it is beautiful. There are a handful of picnic tables so we stop and have our lunch and get some excellent coast pictures. We finish up our day and drive up into Oregon. We decide to make it a light day since we are ahead of schedule and stop in Brookings, Oregon just North of the border. We notice immediately that gas prices has not gone up dramatically but that California really does suck (average price for gas was $3.39 per gallon.) Now Bill is out running along the surf on a very nice (but very cold) beach. The sun is setting in the next 45 minutes but it is a little overcast so we are not sure we will see much. The seagulls are swooping (mine… mine see Finding Nemo for reference) and the waves are crashing. There are dozens of people out in long pants and jackets.

I think Bill feels at home at the Ocean the way I feel in the forest. I think he could wander the coastline for days, weeks or years and never tire of it. I enjoy the ocean myself, the birds and splashing waves but I think Bill enjoys it on a deeper level then I ever can, maybe he was a sea otter or a dolphin in his prior life. Hehe Well Bill has disappeared from sight and sunset is only a short time off. I will go hunt him down and see if we can find a hotel and dinner.

I set off to find Bill and we take pictures of the tide rolling in and the waves crashing over the rocky beach. The sunset goes by unnoticed behind a layer of clouds when I begin to hear music. At first I thought it must be in my head. I can't imagine hearing music with the waves crashing on the rocks. Then suddenly I realize several hundred feet up on a ledge there is a man standing playing a trumpet out over the cove. At first I do not recognize the song he is playing but I hear beats of music between crashing waves. It is an amazing sound. The music dances among the waves and echoes through the cove. It begins to get dark so I walk back to the car on the cliff above and the further from the water I get the more I am able to understand. He finishes the song he was playing and begins playing "Life goes on" Obladee obladaa life goes on…ohh….. I sit on of the steps leading up the cliff side and listen the music mingle with the waves. The last song he plays is Moon River.

Shortly after he stops playing Bill comes up the cliff ready to find a hotel. We head back toward town and remember seeing a motel with an Ocean View and so we stop and find the prices reasonable. We plan to drive to Portland tomorrow which should only be about 330 miles. Then home on Sunday after a visit to Bill's daughter.

JELLY BELLIES!!!

Thursday and today is Jelly Belly day!!!! We grab a quick breakfast and head over to the factory. It's Thursday and April so we figure it will be quiet at the Jelly Belly Factory… WRONG! We wait about 40 mins in line for the tour and end up be the first couple in one of the groups. They give you a cute little paper hats to wear (safety and cleanliness reasons I am sure but probably also to see people wear silly hats.)

As we are waiting for our turn, we talk to the employee at the front of the line and find out he is an executive for the company and today being the Thursday before EASTER it is the second busiest day of the year. LOL Only Bill and I can pick a random day on our roadtrip and have it be the second busiest day of the year… duh… So we take the tour through the factory and its very neat. They really have a brilliant set up with viewing area for almost every step of the way with video from the Modern Marvels episode about Jelly Beans. Did you know Jelly Belly makes Candy corn? Gummi Bears? Sunkist fruit gems? Well I didn't. They also have a whole line of chocolates called JBZs… basically M&Ms with flavored shells (Bill's coments - actually much better than plain old M&M's). Apparently their owner was one of the first to ever make candy corn. I am shocked! I never knew!

What is a Belly Flop? This was something I learned about as well. When Jelly Bellies are made they have this totally cool machine that sorts all the beans out. First if tumbles through and pulls out all the beans too small. Than it tumbles out all the perfect beans, once this has been completed the machine filters out all the too big beans. The imperfect beans are then mixed and bagged and sold as Belly Flops. At Christmas we got a box of Jelly Beans in the office and everyone seemed to enjoy them so when I saw the Belly Flops I bought a case (24 pounds) to bring back. Bill and I are going to split it up and make sure everyone that wants any Belly Flops can have some. So just drop by my desk next week and I will make sure I have a flavor menu so you won't grab a roasted garlic or jalapeno unless you really want one. Although… roasted garlic is quite surprisingly yummy.

Once you leave the tour they give you free samples of the Jelly Bellys and JBZs to take (this tour is free… and they still give you goodies!) there is also a sample "bar" basically you get to go up to the bar and taste any of the flavors they have available. I grabbed a roasted garlic and, while skeptical, I popped it in my mouth… I am utterly shocked that I like it. I also grab up a "Unconventionally" HOT Cinnamon gummi bear. YUMMO! Oh yes and then there was pomegranate. Ohhh yummo!

So Bill and I head over to the wall of Beans. We know we are bringing back the Belly Flops for friends but we must have beans to munch on the way home! We buy too many and then head out. Oh and for those Jelly Belly fanatics out there, they have a little diner in the visitors center that sells Jelly Belly shaped pizza, hamburgers etc.

On the way in we noticed signs for an Olive Oil tasting place. When I realized (months ago) that we would be driving through Northern CA I had hoped we could find some places that make Olive Oil. So when we saw the sign we made sure and stopped by. We tasted several types of oils and vinegar. There was a video on how they press the olives to make the oil that was fascinating. They have infused vinegars and oils that are fabulous and made locally by monks. The best ones there were the tangerine and pomegranate balsamic so we grab up 2 bottles and a bottle of a nice Tuscan Olive Oil to mix for salads.

We now have quite the collection of food stuffs. A jar of green chili made in Santa Fe, Olive oil and vinegars made in CA and marinated garlic and garlic spread also from CA. Not to mention about 27 pounds of Jelly Bellies straight from the factory. LOL

This morning we researched and discovered there are only a couple more Sonic Drive Ins left on our path home (although now we know there is one near Portland which I can get to more often then once every 3 years.) so we drive a little off our intended route for lunch. Bill is now thoroughly addicted and is a bit bummed that there are no Sonics in Seattle. Hey anyone out there want to start a restaurant? I hear Sonics do good business. Hehe

After lunch we hit the road and are headed up to the Redwoods. We will be stopping before we hit there this evening and then spend most of tomorrow among the giants. The weather said cloudy and 60s but its only a little cloudy and it is definitely above 70. So we are happy with our weather today. I hear there is a major cold front headed through much of the country and we are just glad it is not raining. Although the 10 day forcast says we will see rain all week once we are back home… Ahh Seattle, I have missed my kitties but I really have not missed the rain… when will it end? Ah well at least I got a break from it. Summer is just around the corner.

Streets and Trips has sent us off on another questionable but beautiful path. State Road 36 across the Klamath Mountains from Sacramento to Eureka, CA. I have a feeling in hunting season the road is chalk full of people but this time of year it is silent. We drive up and down mountains the road curving with the earth and dipping frequently. The view is incredible and so are my nerves… I seem to do well with the cliff sides for several hours each time but then I become concerned with whether we will ever find out way out of the forests. Going from highways with a 75 mile an hour speed limit to areas where it is not safe to drive more then 25-30 tends to make time slow to a crawl. Dozen of times along the road we stop to watch the deer as they meander across the road and graze on the hill side. Animals in this area seem to respect cars and steer clear of them but do not seem afraid of humans but are wary.

When we saw the sign that said "9% Grade next 2 miles" Bill and I agreed that neither of us had ever seen a 9% grade. So when we saw this: we became a little concerned. We have driven more then 5000 miles on our trip and we have never seen a grade like this for this extended length of road not to mention it is overwhelmed with hairpin turns:

I was fine until I could smell the brakes burning. We pulled over and gave them a chance to cool down. Then made the rest of the way down the hill. After we got to 101 we decided to stop at a little Brew Pub for dinner. The food was excellent and the locals were cute. Lots of cowboys in jeans and hats. hehe

Well we decided to crash here at the local generic chain motel. Tomorrow I walk among the giants... Night.

Scenic Highway 1

Ahh it's Wednesday. The sky is slightly overcast and we are a little sad but really can not complain since nearly every day of the past 3 weeks has been gorgeous. We set out from San Luis Obispo to drive the scenic highway 1 stretch from Morro Bay to Monterey on our way into San Francisco. Even though the sky is overcast and a little smoggy the birds are out enjoying the wind. There are a small family of squirrels running around one of the view points we pull into. I also snap a few pictures of the happy cows that come from California, compared to the ones we saw in the desert I would have to agree that these look happier. We then stop at a seal protection and viewing area. There are hundreds of seals napping in the sand. I film them for a few minutes and randomly gawk and oohhh and ahhh. I just love animals… but I guess you wouldn't have guessed that. Heh

After hours of beautiful scenic driving we arrived in Monterey. We decide to grab a late lunch/early dinner and head over to the coast and find an excellent little seafood place. I have an AMAZING Dungeness Crab Alfredo pasta and Bill has Stuffed Shrimp over pasta with Portobello, tomato and a garlicy olive oil sauce. We sit out on the al fresco dining area and watch the kids play in the sand. Then we shop for a bit. I get a new hoody jacket and Bill gets a few goodies. We jump back in the car and head to Frisco. We arrive later then we had planned but the time was well spent in Monterey (I really like Monterey… it reminds me of coastal pictures I have seen of Italy.) We grab a few pictures of the Frisco skyline and the Golden Gate Bridge. One of the top priorities on our journey home was to stop and tour the Jelly Belly Factory. We decided to head up to Fairfield, CA tonight to see the factory first thing tomorrow, at which point we can decide if there is anything in San Francisco that is calling to us or if we want to bypass it in favor of more time along the coast and at the Redwoods. This would allow for a more leasurely last 2 days as we would not be trying to drive the full 550 (or so) miles from Redwoods to Maple Valley.

Long Beach to San Luis Obispo

Happy Tuesday, This morning we found out there was a Chik'fil'a in Long Beach and so we headed a little out of the way to have breakfast there. Yum… We drive down to Long Beach and they are setting up for the Grand Prix so we skip going down to the beach and head back up into LA via Highway 1. We drive along the coast for a while and it's beautiful Basically a lot like West FL but with more waves and the water is nasty cold. No swimming for me.

My allergies are going bonkers. There are hundreds of blooming plants and trees and no way to figure out what is causing it but I luckily brought my medicine. I am hoping once we reach further North they will give me a break. I am actually surprised I have not had any problems through the entire trip until California. Maybe I am allergic to this state?!?!? Heh…

For lunch we know exactly where we want to be. 970 La Brea Avenue a.k.a. Pink's Hot Dog Stand. This has been a suggestion from friends, family and Food TV as well as several of our books so we figure we can not bypass it. We grab a few dogs and a Spicy Polish Sausage and have lunch then drive down Hollywood Blvd for a couple pictures… I am discovering I really don't care much about celebrities. *shrug* so we head over to Malibu for the afternoon and to avoid LA rush hour traffic.

So while I was in Vegas I neglected to post about my jewelry making class. On Friday I took a class about wire wrapping jewelry. I will post a picture of the necklace I made. It was very cool and I learned a ton of useful tips and tricks to help me become more skilled at it. I am glad we decided to take this trip.

While driving along 1 and 101 we decide to cut across from Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo via a "short cut" now frequently our short cuts have been more like long cuts (see 10,000 Feet up OMG) this cut turns out to be similar and equally as beautiful. We drive along through the Los Padres National Forest and right past the Cachuma Lake Area. It is like paradise and as I mention this we drive past a sign for Paradise Road. Hehe apparently great minds think alike. We are planning to stop in San Luis Obispo tonight in order to make San Francisco by early afternoon tomorrow. The sun is beginning to set and I will see if I can get some nice pictures tonight. I need to remember to post last nights sunset. It was beautiful.

We found it… I should explain. Many many many months ago Bill and I discussed this hotel called the Madonna Inn. http://www.madonnainn.com/ he had found a link on some website and thought it looked very cool. We daydreamed a bit about flying down and staying in one of their very interesting rooms. Well time passed and we didn’t think about it much again until… As we were driving from LA to San Luis Obispo Bill says… where was that hotel we saw on the internet that one time? I immediately remember exactly what he was talking about… well guess where it is? San Luis Obispo… We remembered that they tend to fill up and that they generally require reservations so we do not get our hopes up as we travel along the road. We arrive and in Bright Pink Neon it says VACANCY! I squeak my pleasure and we rush to the registration desk. This is not your average everyday hotel. The owner is a bit eclectic and so every room is completely different… when I say "different" I mean REALLY different. When you walk into the registration area they have a wall lined with postcards of each room with their name and number on them. You receive a list of rooms that are available for the night and prices and you get to choose your room from the wall. (I am glad I saved so much for this trip LOL.)

We got the Cabin Still room. Here is what the website has to say about the room "Conversation pieces everywhere you look in this room! We have built a replica of an old-fashioned still in the bath, but no “moonshining.” The bathroom has a chain that comes down from the ceiling that you flush with… the nightstands are rocks coming out of the wall. The walls, floors and part of the ceiling are all rocks. The lights above the bed are lanterns. The whole room is traditional still. I feel like I am living in Uncle Jessie's bathroom (for reference see Dukes of Hazzard.) So it seems California may have some redeeming factors. Check flickr for more pictures of the weird room. Heh

This is definitely turning out to be the most unusual and likely unforgettable vacation I have ever taken.

California or Bust

Mileage 198341

Monday morning and I don't have to go to work… I am really beginning to like this concept. Today we are driving Barstow to Santa Monica… our final day on Route 66. *sigh* We found the signs painted on the road and were able to take a few pictures. I am pleased. We grab breakfast at this little place called the Palms Café. In honor of it being my last breakfast on Route 66 I have the biscuits and gravy. I shall miss it. The land here is again pretty desolate. I was reading one of my Route 66 books and they talked about how disheartened many of the people that were traveling out here during the dust bowl must have been when they crossed the Colorado River into California and discovered, not the land of milk and honey they had been told about, but hundreds of more miles of desert. There is so much history in these little patches of pavement. So many people with so many dreams travelled along this route. That is the one main theme in all of the Route 66 materials I have read. People with dreams of settling in CA to make a home or dreams of vacations or dreams of just a better place then where they were coming from.

We have finally arrived in the LA area. We drive down Route 66 and it is pretty updated. There is less Kitsch but it is nice to see what Route 66 would look like if it were built today. The car is telling us we need to change the oil so we stop for a quick oil change and then continue our path. I noticed that along our route lies San Dimas. Now for you Bill and Ted fans out there this is a little geekfest for me. I beg Bill to drive us down by the High School so that I can get a picture of the sign. When we get there guess what… There is NO sign. Now knowing that there are a lot of Keanu Reeve haters out there it disappoints me but does not surprise me. So I take a picture of the building and sadly move on. Goodbye San Dimas, thanks for the memories.

So far I am not impressed with California. I have been to California for conventions and have never much liked the people or places I have seen. It's too expensive and for the same things I can get at home. Only time will tell if California can win me over.

Check Flickr for more pictures... off to see if I can find a Chik'fil'a breakfast. LOL

Packed up this morning and am sad to leave. We are on our way to California and back on Route 66. We tried to head over to Oatman and discovered that the road is unpaved. While we would love to see the burrows we decided it would be better for us to have a car in one piece on the way home. So we bypass Oatman and head to Barstow. We are staying at another Route 66 Motel tonight the name of this one? "Route 66 Motel" Hehehe the parking lot is full of old cars and there is a center area that has an old water wheel… which personally I think is hysterical since we are still in the middle of the DESERT! The hotel looks well kept and so we will have another new place to call home for the night and has round beds!Then off to find dinner but I MUST stay away from the Mexican… how do they eat that all the time? I LOVE it but it just kills me.

I forgot to mention my wire wrapping class but I will add that in later. My head is spinning from all the fun in Vegas. It will take me a bit to catch up.

Tonight we sleep in the Dunes Motel Sunset of Sunset Blvd in Hollywood, CA... It is quite a bit different then Hollywood, FL. heh I will add more tomorrow once I have a good nights sleep.

Phantom of Vegas...

Vegas was more fun than I could ever have imagined. Not being a gambler I had thought the most of what is Vegas is gambling. When I realized I was going to be in Vegas I began doing research. I found out that Vegas is basically a second New York in it's Quality shows. I researched for months trying to decide which shows to see. I have seen cirque de sole shows when I lived in FL and I have seen a few different Broadway shows in various parts of the country but there was a show I had never been able to see, Phantom of the Opera. I love the story and so when I found out the show is running in Vegas I was excited. I contemplated a number of other shows but kept coming back to this one. Part of the reason is Bill also very much likes the story and has already seen the play and the movie and has the soundtracks. So we both agreed to go. When we will researching ticket prices we saw that the best seats in the house were available. We had 7 rows back center stage. The cost was a bit higher but I have saved and saved for this trip and figured I may only be in Vegas once so I might as well get the best experience. So when Andrew Lloyd Webber decided to bring Phantom to Vegas they decided to build an entire 1800s style opera house for the audience to sit in. The opera house was fantastic and we sat for several minutes before the show and gawked at it. Unfortunately they will not let people take pictures so if you want to see it check out the Venetian hotel in Vegas' website and you can see them. The lights go down and the show keeps you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. There are a few scenes that have been shortened to make the show more "Vegas Style" and while die hards may find this repulsive I did not miss them much (Bill agreed.) The woman that Plays Christine is very good… a little less innocent looking then I think should be for the part but in Vegas… innocence is probably hard to come by. The man that plays Raoul is FANTASTIC. (of course the fact that he looks similar to Colin Firth didn't hurt him…LOL) When I saw the movie version I was routing for the Phantom because I absolutely hated the guy that played Raoul but in this version he absolutely and completely won me over. The man that played the Phantom was quite good as well but the men that played Raoul really stole the show for me.

After the show we walked around the Venetian. We had talked about doing a Gondola ride but when we found out the wait was an hour and a half we grabbed a cappuccino gelato and walked out onto Las Vegas Blvd. We headed towards Treasure Island and got there just too late to catch the show there so we head down to Margaritaville and have dinner. Bill wanted a souvenir cup and I was not apposed to the idea so we headed to the bar and grabbed drinks… Bill got a MONDO margarita in this very cool MASSIVE glass. Unfortunately they refused to sell me a Daiquiri in the glass so I got one of the pilsners with a strawberry daiquiri. We got into the restaurant and had dinner by which time Bill had finished the margarita. LOL I was still sipping away on my daiquiri for an hour or more. After we left we walked down through the Bellagio. We went into the gardens and saw their butterfly house (very cool) and then headed out to watch the fountains. We watched them for a while and then headed back to the hotel.

Vegas is so relaxing...

So I spent 80 minutes today with a Shiatsu Therapist and I have to tell you I feel Marv-elous! I could melt into this chair and just stay for days. After the massage I spent some quality time in the sauna trying to recoup some moisture in my lungs. I could learn to like this. I also found out this afternoon that the spa facilities are available to guests each day for a minimal fee. I am now beginning to contemplate whether I will ever actually leave the hotel. Only time will tell.


We were able to catch up with Dan & Mindy for dinner. The steak was very good but the Hollandaise Sauce on the grilled asparagus stole the show. I tell ya, Vegas is beginning to make me feel like a Queen. LOL I am so NOT gonna want to leave.

Photo Link Updated

Howdy all,

I was finally able to sit down and post a lot of pictures up on my flickr account. Here is the link again in case you need it.

http://flickr.com/photos/ghgoddess/

Hope everyone is enjoying the blog. I really miss my kitties... can't say I miss work much but I am sure I will be ready for some stability in another week or so... or maybe not. LOL

Enjoy!
Leslie

I spent many months saving for this trip and was able to save more then I expected. When Bill and I realized we would be in Vegas a day early we contemplated staying at a strip hotel or on Fremont St. I had heard so much about Fremont Street and after comparing a few prices and options we agreed that Fremont Street would be a blast. Part of the money I have saved for this trip was to spend spoiling myself at some of the spas here in Vegas in order to help relax and wash away my stress. When we found out there was a beautiful Spa Room available at the Golden Nugget hotel I was so excited. We grabbed up the opportunity to stay there. We get into our special elevator to go up to the special Spa Tower of the hotel. There are only about 5 floors of these suites with 5 suites (or so) per floor. The suite is 2 floors, the bottom floor is a living and dining area with a bathroom and a full bar area (no alcohol provided.) The top floor is the King size bedroom and the bathroom… the bathroom is ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh… jetted tub with a view out the wall of windows (more on that in a minute), sauna shower… ahhhhhhhhhhhhh… It was so nice. Then you have to take in the view, mountains and sky and a few casino lights. Then there is the bed… The pillow top was a good 3 inches thick alone… You climb in and it envelopes you. Sucking you into cloudy wonderfulness. I have to say in my extensive use of hotel rooms between my job and vacations I have never experienced anything like this. It's soft and yet firm. It was perfect. Why can't I take a bed home as a souvenir?

We spend the early part of the evening on the street experiencing the Fremont Street Experience. Every hour on the hour they play a video across this enormous screen. It was pretty cool. There are a number of street acts that catch our attention. Over all an incredible first night in Vegas. During the day we move down to the South Point hotel & casino where the Expo will be. Bill has a class this afternoon so I wander the casino and enjoy a little quiet time. Hehe

Tomorrow will be fun. I get to have dinner with Dan & Mindy and have a nice Shiatsu massage. I am going to hate leaving Vegas!

Today is our last day on Route 66 until we leave Vegas. We have almost completed our portion of the Mother Road. It has been an experience. Today we are driving on the bypassed portion of Route 66 through the back country of Arizona. Most of the small towns are nonexistent. We drive through areas where movies like Easy Rider were filmed. The hills in the background are beautiful and the sun and clouds roll across them enhancing the colors. We have really had amazing weather this trip. This section of Route 66 is the longest paved un-touched portion of the route that is left. From here to California you can completely bypass interstates (or so the book says.) We picked up a couple box sets of old 50s and 60s music and have had that playing as our personal soundtrack while we drive these back roads. I can close my eyes and picture myself in a poodle skirt and scarf wrapped pony tail riding in an old Bel Air or early model mustang with the top down and the wind whipping, stopping at the local diners or soda shops for a phosphate. I do believe at times I was born in the wrong era. Maybe that is my Dad's influence.

This morning we left early so that we can reach Vegas tonight instead of tomorrow. We made reservations at the Golden Nugget down on Fremont. I really was hoping to be able to spend a night down in Old Vegas. So many people that go to Vegas want to stay in the newest coolest Strip hotels and they miss the history of the area. So we will experience Fremont Street tonight and then move on to the Expo hotel. What's the Expo? Well it is the entire reason this trip came into being. Bill and I will be attending the Glass & Bead Expo at the South Point Hotel & Casino. (Yes that is the hotel that about a dozen of my co-workers were at just a few days ago for Games Expo.) I have heard that the hotel has a fantastic Steak house.

Added by Bill - Today while on Route 66 something really incredible happened - Leslie went into a gift shop, walked around looking at things - - and actually left the store without purchasing a magnet.

Flagstaff to Williams, AZ via Grand Canyon

We got up early this morning to hit the road to the Grand Canyon. I am amazed at how many people are here considering all the other National and State parks we have been to were quiet. We hear more languages then we can even identify. We decide to take one of the shuttles out to the West points along the path and take a ton of pictures. The day is a little hazy but it keeps it from getting too hot. Overall it was a beautiful day to be out. Bill and I both get a little sunburned. I think Bill began to really grasp his fear of heights today (Bill's comment - I knew I had a fear of heights - but it does take a good few thousand foot cliff to really make one truly appreciate it). hehehe

The Grand Canyon is amazing. Bill and I both agree that our amazement with it is somewhat diminished due to the other fantastical things we have seen in the past week (Arches, petrified trees, painted deserts) but is still a must see. The vastness surprises me. I have seen pictures of the Grand Canyon and even saw an IMAX show about it but I never could (and still really don't) grasp how amazingly huge it is.

Bill and I visit one of the gift shops when we enter the park. As soon as I walk in the door I see a book that I must have. "Over The Edge: Death In Grand Canyon". The day Bill and I walked through Arches I stopped at one point after reading an informational sign that didn't tell me much of anything I wants to know and said "Where are the signs that tell how many people get bit by Rattlesnakes each year?" Bill laughed at me. (Bill's Comment - actually before we even got into the gift shop there was a FAQ sign that answered the question of how many people fell off the rim of the canyon - that is where I laughed at her.) So when I saw this book I knew it was written for me. I grab a few magnets to add to my collection and off we go discovering. On our shuttle back from one of our hikes, the bus is full of people so much that I can not see anything interesting… I knew it would be about 25 minutes to our parking area (or so the driver said) and so I pick up the book. It is fascinating. Stories about people that made it and other stories about people that did not. It is very respectful of the people and is supposed to be a guide to help people that are visiting the parks be more self aware. I am learning not to walk on the guard walls and not to take that one more step back for a picture… not to mention the people that die being just plain dumb. This father who was a known prankster wanted to scare his young daughter… so he stood on a wall where there was a small ledge behind it and then flailing his arms "Fell" backwards… his daughter not thinking it was funny walked back to the car to meet with the rest of the group. Hours later they found him at the bottom… *rolls eyes* Poor girl is fatherless and all because Dad wanted to joke around on a ledge with a 400 foot drop behind it… anyway I will be continuing to read the book along our path to make sure Bill and I learn more self awareness… heh.

We again come to a point in the day where we have scheduled to leave but decided to stay for a little while longer. We hike out on a few of the small paths to the photograph points and take more pictures. Then have lunch at one of the little places inside the park. We head out just before 6 pm (instead of the 3-4 pm we had planned.) As we look at the road ahead we are still ahead of schedule and decide that we will stay in Williams, AZ tonight and catch the strip of Route 66 between Williams and Kingman in the daylight.

More painted desert above

Winslow is just on this side of being a ghost town. The hot spot in town is a corner with a statue of the Eagle's lead singer (I think) and a sign "Standing on the Corner", cleverly painted on the wall behind the statue is a painting of "It's a girl my lord in a flat bed Ford slowing down to take a look at me". We take it easy in Winslow for the night and then hit the road early. The time change has thrown us off a tad but not in a bad way. We grab breakfast at Sonic… mmmm… Sonic… and then head off to the Meteor Crater! This is totally cool. Now this is how people should learn about things… instead of in a dusky old classroom. We take a tour of the crater and in the 1 hour Rim Tour I learn more about physics then I did in 9 months of torment in High School. The crater is 550 feet deep. Initially scientists believed it was a volcano cone but then discovered it was what it is… a crater from a meteor. The meteor hit with a pressure comparable to a 20,000 ton dynamite blast. Now that's something. We are now on our way down to Phoenix to hang out with my friend Jon for dinner.

Depending on our mood we will either be staying in Flagstaff or at the Grand Canyon tonight. More later. Lunch with Jon was a blast. We gabbed and gabbed and for anyone that knows me and Jon you know we can both gab. LOL

Well on the way back North Bill and I realized that we are about a half a day early on our schedule so we decided to stop in Flagstaff for the night. Nothing special hotel but it was inexpensive. Since today was kinda slow I will keep it short for Eric's sake. LOL More pictures to come.

Gallup, NM to Winslow, AZ

Above: Lightning Tree from the Ice Caves

Happy Saturday!

New Mexico has been an experience I shall not forget for a long time. When I came out of the hotel to load the car this morning I see that Bill has killed and mounted a tumbleweed onto the hood of the car… ok so actually it looks like we just hit one along the road but I thought it was funny so I took a picture. There is an Ortega Aztec store in the hotel and as I wander through I spy a gorgeous pair of heart shaped earrings that are turquoise and coral and a few other colors. I decide I must have these so I bought them. I am hoping to find something more at a few of the other Indian stores.

Mmmmmmm fry bread.

I was able to pick up another pair of earrings from one of the stores that is owned by Navajo. The store I decide to spend my money at only sells handmade items by local people. Many of the other stores are very tourist trappy and I know from living in Florida which stores are the best to support.

The Petrified Forest and the Painted desert are amazing. I can barely begin to describe the beauty and colors. Between these sights and the Arches I am more amazed at the beauty that nature creates. The pictures we take do not show the true vast variety of colors. Today is a perfecdt day to be here due to the sun and light cloud cover. The clouds move over the land casting shadows across the desert and enhancing and dulling colors. It is fascinating to stand and just watch the colors change.

We end up spending more time in the Desert and the Forest then we had planned and will be staying in Winslow tonight. No internet at our hotel and we are too tired to bother with it.

Day 6 Albuquerque, NM to Gallup, New Mexico

This morning we realize that green chilies are a great evil and decide to try a breakfast without. We drive along Central Avenue (Route 66) in old town Albuquerque and run across a bakery just down the street from the university. The name is "Chocolate Café & Bakery". Sounds like my kinda place. We look at the menu and see lots of green chili options but we are determined to say no for at least one meal. I am not as strong at denying myself so I don't even tempt myself with the option and order the chocolate pancakes. When the sign says they serve "Breakfast, Lunch and Chocolate" they are not kidding. The pancakes are made with cocoa powder and chips AND they serve it with chocolate syrup… and not some Hershey's chocolate… this stuff is homemade. This is likely the richest thing I have ever eaten. I share Bill's Omelet with swiss cheese and spinach and so I don't think I will die just yet… lol… I can definitely see how death by chocolate is an option though… (Bill's comments - the chocolate pancakes were very good and really rich to the point where Leslie did not want to stop at Dunkin Doughnuts when we passed them down the street).

Petroglyph National Monument is a site. You can do a few hikes around the area (and when I mean hikes I mean climbing rocks and hoping there are no rattlers around.) We got some great exercise and some very cool pictures. They believe the first petroglyphs in this area were made as early as 1000 BC.

Well we somehow ripped part of the GPS cord and have to find an electronics store to get it replaced. Remarkably we have been around half of downtown Alb… and haven't found a single Best Buy or Circuit City. We are driving around a bit and finally find a mall area. We find the Best Buy and what is next door? Chik'fil'a. We go there for lunch… I am pleased. (Bill's comments - I am not sure that really describes it - - I do believe that she squealed she was so excited). We finally head out of town towards Gallup. We have decided to take the scenic route off Route 66 and down through the mesas. It's been cloudy off and on which has been nice to cool off. We have had scattered thunder and lightning but it hasn't hurt our trip. I do miss the good thunder storms.

We decide to do the bypass and come across one of the "attractions" we had discussed seeing the Fire & Ice: Ice Caves and Volcano tour. We find this way back in BFE. Basically on this backward piece of land there was a volcano that erupted 10,000 years ago. The land is still covered with dried Lava (not sure if there is a technical term for it) and a cave down in the ground that is full of ice. You basically get a map of the area with numbers on it and the numbers coincide with little logs set along the path. You read the pamphlet to tell you what you are seeing. It was absolutely fascinating. The first stop on the way to the Volcano (there are 2 paths… 1 for the volcano and 1 for the cave) is a tree that has been struck by lightning. Apparently because of the makeup of the lava and the ground around the area trees in the area are more susceptible to being struck. Now I am from Florida… namely Tampa Bay which from what I understand is a lightning strike capital of the US and I have never seen so many trees in such a small area that have been struck. The lightning strikes are so obvious running the full length of the trees. I took tons of pictures and will add them to my flickr page. We continue along the path and it gets pretty steep. I start breathing really hard and feeling like I am having an asthma attack so I stop and just stand there breathing as deep as I can. I begin to realize I am getting altitude sickness (again.) I slow down and take the mountain at a slower rate and get to the top. At the top is a look down into the cone of the volcano. As we read the little pamphlet it explains that we are at 8059 feet. So this is the second time in a week I have been well over a mile over sea level. As we descend I can actually begin to feel the drop in pressure. It was quite an experience. So we walk down to the path for the Ice Cave and head down the path. We round a corner and there is this staircase descending into darkness. We start to walk down (me clutching the railing) and as I look down into the cave I begin to realize just how claustrophobic I can get. LOL I think the prior altitude sickness did not help matters. There are 3 platforms on the path down. I stop at the first and sit on a small bench. Bill descends into the cave and takes pictures to bring back to me. I am kicking myself now for not going in but at the time I was not quite right in my head. Hehe not to say I am normally…

After the ice caves we continue on to Gallup, NM. As I read my Route 66 book I remember seeing a segment on my Route 66 DVD series about the El Rancho Hotel & Motel. This is the site where a ton of old 40s, 50s and 60s movies were filmed and where several of the top actors and actresses of the day stayed during the filming of many other westerns and other movies. When you enter the lobby there are literally hundreds of pictures of actors and actresses signed to the El Rancho Hotel. Each of the rooms in the Hotel portion of the property are named for these people. Some of the names are John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, Jane Fonda, Ronald Reagan, Allan Ladd, etc. So Bill and I agree we must stay here for the evening. The ambiance is rustic lodge and the restaurant has inviting scents of Mexican mixed with BBQ. Our room is the Rite Hayworth room. I will post pictures on the flickr page tomorrow. Tonight I am exhausted from my trip up the volcano. Hope everyone if enjoying… Thank you all for the comments. I will respond as I am able. Night!

Day 6 - Tucumcari, NM to Albuqurque (of however you spell it), NM

This morning we wake to rain. It's a nice break from the heat of yesterday. According to the locals this is a hard rain. It only rains for a few hours and stops before we hit the road. Bill, the Blue Swallow Motel, suggests we have breakfast burritos down at Rubee's Diner. I tend to trust locals when it comes to food so we head on down for some AMAZING breakfast burritos and biscuits and gravy (ohmy!). Our last stop out of town is the Tee Pee Curios Shop. The shop is immaculate. Not your typical cluttered shop. The owner is awesome and so is Maya his pet rat terrier. I grab up 3 more magnets for my collection even thought there are easily 10 I would love to buy. As I turn the corner I am shocked to see they have home made bags from fanny packs up to duffle bags. There is a small satchel type bag that catches my eye. The material is Route 66. I am gaga. I go to look at the price tag expecting it to easily cost $20.. But No! it's $6.98! I am so pleased I giggle and grab one of the bags to take as my own. It is fairly small but easily holds my wallet and the camera. It will hold a few other items but I don't want to stuff too much in there now.

I am quite pleased with my collection of magnets to date. I have 2 from Arches, one of which is a 3D arch… very cool. I also have one from the Hole in the Rock. I picked up 4 in Amarillo 1 is a Texas Route 66, 1 for the Big Texan and the 3rd is Cadillac Ranch and the 4th is a Mother Road Route 66 3D magnet with old 50s Cadillacs pictured. At the Tee Pee I pick up a Tucumcari Tonight magnet, a Blue Swallow Magnet and a New Mexico Route 66. My fridge is not gonna know what hit it. LOL

This morning we are listening to the Cars CD from the movie. It's a great driving CD. I really hope more people will become interested in driving Route 66 from all the new movies out regarding it. For those that haven't seen it… Wild Hogs is a fantastic movie. On that note if you haven't seen Cars my first question would be "Where have you BEEN?!?!" then I would highly suggest you pick it up on DVD. It's one of Pixars best movies yet.

So with every meal for the past few days there is something the waiter will ask every time… "Would you like Green chili on that?" and every time they ask I have to say yes. I keep trying to resist. I even went to a Diner hoping to get a simple cheeseburger but then he said, "would you like green chili on that?" and of course I said… yes… So they bring me this burger it's the bottom bun with the hamburger on top smothered in a delectable queso and chopped chilies on top. So much cheese that the burger is actually surrounded by a small pool of the stuff. It may kill me but it was amazing….

Bill and I have agreed to TRY again to avoid it tomorrow but I fear they may offer to put it on my pancakes and I will have to say… yes please!

We reached Albuquerque OH LOOK! I actually spelled it right myself this time! We are staying at the Monterey NON-SMOKING Motel… It's actually yhe name LOL. Sounds like a place made for me. The first thing the manager asked in a gruff Ukrainian accent when we asked for a room was "Do You Smoke?" We promptly say no and he becomes more friendly. We seem to be having issues with our wifi tonight so I am hoping to get this posted. More tomorrow.

Day 5 Amarillo, TX to Tucumcari, NM

Route 66 starting Mileage 196245

We finally reached Route 66 - The Mother Road. We got up and had buffet breakfast at the Big Texan, yum, then headed off to find Route 66. We have directions through part of Amarillo but decide to take a short off route to see the Big Cowboy. He is a 47 feet tall. He is definitely Route 66 kitschy. We then head over to the Amarillo Historic Route 66 path. We drive along and see so many buildings in disrepair. It is sad. I hope that with all the movies about the area people will consider taking more trips along the route to help rejuvenate this American Legacy. We drive from Amarillo through Vega and Adrian both towns claim to be the midpoint of Route 66 but no one knows which is actually due to the constant changes to the road. Unfortunately due to renovations the Midpoint Café is closed. We do drop by Dot's Museum. It is a sight.

Bill's comments - Unfortunately the Midpoint Café is closed - I would say it is more than unfortunate - all I heard about for miles is how good the pie will be and then we could not get any.

Along our way we reach Tucumcari, New Mexico. Tucumcari is known as the town of 2000 hotel rooms. This was the boast on signs in the 50s and 60s and it became common to here "Tucumcari Tonight" which was a popular song about the common rest area for thousands of Americans on their way to or from the West Coast. Nowadays the town is known for it's restored hotels and it's bright NEON signs. As we arrive we realize that we have not arrived at the best time to see these signs (3 pm) and decided to consider staying over. We have lunch at Del's Restaurant and decide to stay over in the infamous Blue Swallow Motel. In the movie Cars you will see a sign "100% Refrigerated Air" that is the copywrited sign for the Blue Swallow. This is THE place to stay on Route 66 so we figured what the hay? I am so glad we are here. The owner of the Motel is a fantastic guy. He is very chatty and loves to talk about Route 66, the history and the future. Bill and I both pick up T-shirts with the Blue Swallow Motel on them. It is exciting to be in a place with so much American history. We find a map of the town in our room that has a map with a list of all the Murals that are painted around town. We take off and take pictures of the majority of the murals then head back to have our picture taken in front of the sign.

This is Bill again - As Leslie is sitting in a large nice wooden porch chair outside the room of the Blue Swallow I am outside talking to Bill who purchased the motel a few years back and is working to truly restore it to its one time glory. He is a very friendly guy and offers all of his guests the opportunity for him to take their picture in front of the sign. The time is near to take the pictures and we wonder over to the front sign where he is waiting for just the right time. He strikes up conversation and is asking us where we work and what we do - Leslie tries to explain about the games that WizKids makes and then he asks me where I work - when I say a small software company that he might have heard of at (Microsoft) - he goes into the "Oh so you know about computers, I know you are on vacation but if you have a few minutes before you leave can you help with something." He is such a nice friendly guy that after he takes the pictures - I say "lets take a look at what you need." Well he has a beautiful picture of the Blue Swallow sign in the sunset and wants to get some postcards made from a place on line - but can not figure out what all the stuff on the site is telling him to do or how to get the graphics to the right size. Leslie and I get my laptop (which just happens to have a graphics program on it) we take care of his picture and help him navigate his way thru the site and he has 1000 postcards on order now. He has promised to send a postcard as thank you once they are complete.

And back to Leslie - It is so cool to meet people that are so friendly and down to earth. Not to mention it's a heck of a thing for us to have helped him with this project and to always know that we helped get those postcards printed that will be sent around the world and enjoyed by so many people.

One of the websites I read up on mentioned that someone that had travelled Route 66 had asked many of the people along the way to sign a book they had bought that had pictures in it of the places. While researching our trip Bill and I picked up a number of cool books. The one I think really grabs the essence of Route 66 is called "Route 66 Lost & Found Ruins and Relics" This book includes pictures of each place from early in it's heyday and then another picture of it today. The Blue Swallow is there and we ask if they will sign it. Terri (the owners wife) was happy to sign it. We will see how many people we can get to sign the book along the way.

Tonight we will sleep wrapped in the arms of the Mother Road.

Update Day 4

I promised a pic or 2 of the Arches and I have another picture for you. The above is a picture of Bill standing in the North Window Arch. He is the small speck that looks like a dirt spot on the camera.... hehe The following is a basic picture of our path. It is missing a small segment down through Utah and a bit of our Colorado and New Mexico path but there is enough to see our basic progress. 4 days... Seattle to Amarillo, TX.

Day 4 Pagosa Springs to Amarillo, TX

Day 4 begins in a crisp cool 54 degrees. We are definitely higher altitude. Pagosa Springs turned out to be a more accommodating town then I had thought. Even though we had to eat out of the cooler for dinner morning seems to be the time to be in Pagosa Springs. The area is well known for it's hot springs. Bill and I agree to get an early start so we decide to forgo the hot springs (my newly acquired sun burn thanks me). We are both a little anxious to get breakfast and hit the road!

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I really believe this. Now I should mention that I am a Sonic Fanatic.. For those of you in Seattle I am NOT talking about the basketball team. I am talking about the restaurant that you may have seen obscure commercials for on some of your cable channels. I am convinced they run these commercials to taunt me since I moved from an area where Sonics were frequent to Seattle where they are non-existent. (There are a few other restaurants I miss, Chic'fil'a, Cracker Barrel, CC's Pizza but I will get to those later.) So as I look at "Find Restaurants" feature on Streets & Trips what do I behold?!?!??! Sonic! We stopped in Idaho and got just a Cherry Limeade… one of the yummy drink concoctions they are known for and one of my very favorites. In Utah we got a watermelon slush… oh yum… even better after hiking and chili cheese tator tots.

As we leave Pagosa Springs this morning Bill wants to try one of the breakfast items I have been bragging is "one of the best breakfasts I have ever experienced. It's a breakfast burrito. Contents include Egg, sausage, tomato, jalapeno peppers, cheese, tator tots and onion. Yummmo! I also grab a fresh Vanilla Coke… not like the yucky ones in a can… but a real soda-jerk style vanilla coke…. Heaven. So we stop at Sonic and grab breakfast and head out of Pagosa Springs. (next sonic stop will have to be the ultimate in milkshakes… the Chocolate Cream Pie Milkshake… with graham cracker crumbs and all

Note: Sonic Claims (on their cup) to have 168,894 different drink combinations.

Leaving Pagosa Springs there is still snow on the ground in many places. Also this is the first area where we have seen a high population of trees since crossing the Snoqualmie Pass. Now Entering New Mexico. We got a very early start this morning so we will be driving for a while. More later.

10,000 FEET?!??! So we decided to take this little state highway through Northern New Mexico. As we left Colorado we were already up to 7000 elevation. (Streets and Trips GPS gives you your elevation… something we have kind of made into a game. I ask Bill to guess the current elevation… sometimes he has been close but other times he was quite shocked.) So as we go along I realize that we are going up at a fairly regular rate. I look down at the Streets and Trips and see us around 8900 feet… but we are still climbing! Our highest point was 10,554. I guess it wasn't a problem that we bypassed Pike's Peak. LOL

As we drive along this unknown road we come across a canyon… Reading the signs it turns out to be the Rio Grande Gorge. It's amazing and we get a number of pictures at the rest stop. If you ever happen to be running down highway 64 in NM stop at this rest stop. The view is amazing and the bathrooms are awesome! Tiled in a rich natural orange and the walls made out of local stone. Not to mention the cleanest rest stop I have ever encountered. There are also covered picnic tables for public use.

Ok we are back down to earth… well partially. Current Altitude is 6300 feet. As we drive along the back roads of New Mexico we run through a small town full of adobe buildings. I play the tourist taking tons of pictures while the natives laugh at me. We drive through the Carson National Forest which I believe is named after Kit Carson the Female gunslinger. I will have to check my reference book to clarify. We go from massive hills and frozen lakes down to plains with roaming Buffalo… or are they Bison???? Maybe Beefalo? As we drive we have 2 deer dart across the road a few yards in front of the car than shortly down the road there are antelope playing… I figure I have now had the full SW experience… I should just head home… or not.

Out here there is next to nothing. Towns consist of a Bar or Liquor store, gas station and a grocery store. We can see for miles. The sky is clear except for a few tufty clouds and dozens of shades of blue depending on which direction you look. There is dry grass for miles around on our road from Cimarron to Raton, New Mexico.

The dry air is taking a toll on my hands and feet. I had to stop and buy a large bottle of lotion. I can tell I am a Florida girl because I seem to need at least 50% humidity. My breathing has been hard when walking very far but I have faith that my system will adjust to the drier air in the next day or so. I am amazed that we have been able to keep up with our 2+ liters of water per day without having to stop every 5 minutes.

We stop in Raton, NM for lunch at a little steakhouse. It's pretty good. The road from Raton to Clayton is sparse of anything… other then maybe rattlesnakes. Not to mention it is under construction to widen it which neither of us understand as we have only seen about 10 cars headed in each direction. With the construction we are stuck in a 45 mile per hour zone with double fine threats ever few hundred feet. So we creep along in nowhereland hoping this road will end soon. Our first several hours in NM were far more interesting. Thank goodness the rest of the time we have in this state will be on Route 66 which has enough interesting things to keep us distracted from the repetitive and monotone landscape.

According to the First National Bank of New Mexico it is now 6:17pm and 75 degrees. Gotta love this weather! We have discussed it and it looks like we may continue on until we hit Amarillo, tonight. This would save us quite a bit of driving tomorrow and we would have time to visit the Palo Duro Canyon or some of the more… interesting… areas of Amarillo, TX.

Amarillo it is. We are hoping to stay at the Big Texan Hotel that is attached to the Big Texan Steak House, best known for their 72 ounce steak that if you eat it all in under 1 hour it's free. Neither of us has ANY intention of even trying it but we hope to have a reasonable sized steak for lunch tomorrow and hope to see someone attempt the monstrosity.

We made it. 4 days to Amarillo. We are staying at the Big Texan Motel and you gotta see this! I will post pictures in the morning since you won't be able to see much in the dark. Picture an old John Wayne movie that clashed into a bad 70s flick. Oh MY! We are sitting in the Big Texan Steak House as I post this. The restaurant provides free Wi Fi for guests. The restaurant looks like the inside of any classic movie tavern but with the added touch of about 100 stuffed animal heads… we aren't talking teddy bears here. It is complete with a full balcony around the entire restaurant area with seating. The motif is just stunningly tacky Texas and I love it. I am beginning to realize that many people reading this will know more about me and my bizarre sense of fun by the time I am back home in Seattle. Maybe I can even make a few new friends from this experience.

P.S. We can't find Bill's phone. We aren't sure if we might have left it in Colorado… Hope to find it soon… Time to eat!