Where Have I been?

I obviously have not been blogging! Here I sit in my "office" second bedroom at home watching snow flurries, listening to nice soft jazz vocals on Pandora, working on our Christmas card list, drinking tea, and as usual, finding many diversions.

Fall Biking

Today my ride on the Prairie Path was delightful. There were few other bikes, a good. number of runners, and a few walkers. No one was being crazy. There were fallen leaves on the path and the smells were of fall. The weather was cool but not cold and the sky was clear and sunny. This was all much nicer than most rides in the summer where bikers are riding as fast as they can, and groups walk or ride three or four abreast, not sharing the path. I really enjoyed this ride, though because it has been almost three weeks since I've ridden, my 11 mile circuit was about all I could handle!

Collaboration Not Competition

This is my lesson from driving to Davenport last weekend and Minneapolis this week. Driving requires collaboration and cooperation. We are not and should not be in competition with each other on the road.

Home

My GPS reports 5,296.6 miles on this trip. Glen Ellyn Illinois, Estes Park Colorado, Boulder Colorado, Moab Utah, Redmond Oregon, Boulder Colorado, Glen Ellyn Illinois. elevation from 575 feet to 12,600 feet. 89:30 moving time with a moving average of 59 miles/hour.

Places and Things I Dislike...and Like

The entire corridor from Provo to Salt Lake City. Omaha at rush hour. Boulder/Denver at rush hour.

The Interstate Highway system is really awesome. Thanks Ike. We couldn't do it today. Eastern Oregon along Route 20 is beautiful. Southwestern Idaho and Southwestern Wyoming are great to drive through and take in.

Being on the way home is nice, but as the traffic picks up the number of rude drivers does too.

Biking in Boulder is wonderful. And, my new bike is too.

 

Redmond

This week I have been spending time with my grand kids Avery and Anika. This is the week before school starts and their normal summer daytime activity of Boys and Girls Club is closed this week and therefore they get me! I can't say that we have really accomplished anything except hang out, shop for groceries and other items, fix dinner, go to the park, read in the sun, have lunch, lay low, go to the park, and watch a couple of movies. Today we are really laying low. This morning we went to the park and tossed a frisbee and talked, but this afternoon it is just to darn hot. The house is still cool from last night and we've got all of the shades drawn and it is comfortable. I tried to play the ukulele outside but after about 30 minutes I was done. Anika and I are now watching Matilda - her favorite movie. We dropped Avery off at school where he is doing some leadership training and ran a few errands but now we are inside and quite.

Avery Selfie

Another Avery Selfie

Shy Anika

iPad mini looking into iPad

 

Road Trip Observations

Visitors to National Parks are easily distracted. They often forget the purpose of yellow lines in the road, the usefulness of turn signals, and that there are other people on the road behind them. We saw in Rocky Mountain National Park that animals are an amazing draw that make folks do incredibly stupid things like drive off the road to park, or stop in the road, or worst stand with their kids close to large, wild animals. In Rocky Mountain National Park the attraction was elk. Why would you stand with your kids anywhere close to an elk herd? They are not pets. They are wild. The same behavior is multiplied in Yellowstone with buffalo.
Interstates. They get you there but they sure are uninteresting. Maybe it is not just the interstates, but perhaps the country they go through. Some of the worst are through the Midwest and west. Iowa, Nebraska, eastern Wyoming and Colorado and don't forget southern Idaho!

Dining On The Road

I have had some wonderful meals on this trip, most memorable in Boulder and Moab. Not to say I haven't enjoyed my meals in Davenport, Lincoln, Ontario, and Redmond. In fact, today was one of those high points with a vanilla porter and fried onion rings at Smith Rock Brewing in Redmond.

And, let's not forget Gobble, Gobble Balls that I made on Monday night in Redmond. Follow the link and find the recipe on Saveur. I made a fetticini carbonara without bacon or pancetta to go with the meatballs. This was a winner.

In Boulder, Ella's is not to be missed. This southern diner Hungarian fusion restaurant provided me with the best chicken fried steak I have had in twenty five years. And finished off with a Dobos torte as seen below. Sharon found this restaurant and it is on her regular schedule now.

Moab was home to the Desert Bistro. This was quite a surprise even though Jim at the bar at Bistro Monet told me it was good and the Trip Advisor reviews were positive. The dishes were beautifully prepared and presented and delicious. The service was great. The only downside was the pricing. They were not cheap but they were serving prime ingredients in a place you do not expect them, especially Hawaian fish.

 

 

 

Phobias

Ever dealt with a phobia? I have a long standing one that was always in the background since I was in high school. Now it has become more pronounced and I am wondering how best to deal with it. I have a fear of heights, especially when I am driving a mountain road on the outside edge. This started when I was a teenager driving to Surfside, Texas over the bridge over the Intercoastal Canal. It hit me big time this trip when I drove the Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. I dealt with it also at Arches and Canyonlands National Parks and even today driving to Cove Palisades State Park in Central Oregon.
As I was driving the Trail Ridge Road my phobia was a real problem for me. And, as much as I tried to reason my fear away it remained. I am a good driver. I know how to control my vehicle. The road is plenty wide. I am not going to fall off. There are a lot of other people on the road in both bigger and smaller vehicles. They are not falling off the road. Many of them are probably horrible drives and they are not running off the road. All of these thoughts and more ran through my head but the fear remained. It is unreasonable fear. It is fear that cannot be reasoned away. It is real.
How to people overcome phobias such as this? I'm going to do some reading because I am determined to understand and overcome this. So that I can stand on the edge of the canyon, as I couldn't today.

2610

Since my last blog post I've driven 2610 miles and I am now sitting at John and Kristie's house in Redmond Oregon. I've been to and stayed in Lincoln Nebraska and Estes Park Colorado Boulder Colorado and Moab Utah and Ontario Oregon and Redmond Oregon. Along the way I have hiked in Rocky Mountain National Park and biked in Boulder Colorado and driven through and hiked Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park. Details to follow!

The photos below were all taken in Canyonlands and Arches. Wow.

 

Marc Vetri

A well written piece on "G.I." - "I'm Gluten Intolerant...Intolerant"

 

What No Pictures?

The blog has been lacking in photographs lately. Here are some from my ride today.

 

Adjustments

Tomorrow willl mark one week since my final cataract surgery. I am still adjusting to life without glasses and contacts. Most evening I have an urge to remove my contact lenses and then realize I don't have contacts.in my eyes. When I wake during the middle of the night before I get up I reach for the night table for my glasses and then realize they are no longer there.

I am seeing better and more confidently each day post surgery. An example, I am writing this on my iPad on my portable keyboard. I can clearly read the text on the iPad screen and clearly see the keys on the keyboard without reading glasses. Oh, I do find myself putting on reading glasses when I do not need to. A habit I will need to break. I don't want my eyes to get lazy.

Tomorrow I see Dr. Sarkos and hopefully she will tell me I do not need to wear the eye shield at night and I can cut back on the three eye drops I am using. I also will ask for a recommentation on a eye drop for lubrication. My left eye sometimes feels as if I have something in it, though Dr. Lindenmuth says there is nothing there. Perhaps just a lubricating drop from time to time will make that feeling go away.

Yesterday I was back on my bike on both the Illinois Prairie Path and the Great Western Trail. Glen Ellyn to Elmhurst on the Prairie Path then up to the Great Western Trail from Villa Park to Lombard, then back to the Prairie Path to Glen Ellyn. Just under 14 miles. Next step 20. I did create bicycle problems for myself yesterday. I decided to "Slime" my tubes to prevent flats. The front tire went well but not the back. The tire valve remover tool that came with the Slime broke in the valve of the back tube and I could not get it out. I finally had to pay a visit to the downtown Glen Ellyn bike shop for a replacment tube. I now have a Slimed tube in the front tire and a new tube in the back tire and half a bottle of leftover Slime. I suppose the experience was good for me in several ways. It is possible that the stubborn valve was defective and would have failed wile I was riding and I would have been walking. I found my old tire levers in one of my tool boxes and got to use them to replace a tube. And, I got practice in repairing bicycle tires!

Last night I considered my route on this year's road trip. After spending the weekend with Lee and Peg and Sharon in Estes Park and then two more nights with Sharon in Boulder I head to Redmond. I decided to visit Moab, Utah and Arches National Park on the way. I will have one day to beautiful scenery and mountain driving from Boulder to Moab on Interstate 70. That will give me an afternoon and evening at Arches. Then the next day will be all driving with a target of Ontario, Oregon. I'll to a little sight seeing on the way as I will pass by the Great Salt Lake. From Ontario to Redmond will be an easy half day of driving.

Cataract Surgery II

Yesterday was cataract surgery - this time on my right eye. The procedure seemed routine since I had my left eye done last month. This time though, I told the anesthesiologist That it seemed the last time I was too aware of the procedure near the end and wanted a bit more anesthesia. He told me he would, but even though I believe he did, I was aware through the entire procedure. That was freaky! However, I was not concerned, just aware. I could hear everyone in the room talking, I could hear instruments I could see light and things going on around me eye. I wanted to ask for music but had been told not to move or talk - so I behaved. It seems it took longer for the anesthesia to wear off this time, likely because I got a bit more. I was pretty much out of it on the drive home and then took a nap shortly after arriving home. I wasn't really functional until around 5:00 p.m and then I was in bed before 9:00 p.m. with lights out shortly after.
Today, my vision is amazing. Everything is crisp and clear and bright, perhaps a bit too bright. I am seeing with both eyes uncorrected by glasses or contacts for the first time since I was two years old and it is quite amazing. Naturally I am pleased. I will probably need to continue to use reading glasses but I do not mind that at all. Being able to wake up at night or in the morning and be able to see is a wonderful gift.
My brain has some adjusting to do - colors and clarity and balancing my eyes, but I suspect that within a week or so I will be adapted to this new life. Thank you Medicare and United Healthcare and Dr. Sophia Sarkos!

 好吃多吃 (hao chi duo chi)

Random Observations

Today as I was sitting in a doctor's office waiting for an exam it occurred to me that never have I avoided seeing a doctor because I was concerned about the cost. I do know that some people do not see doctors because of the cost of care and that has never been a concern of mine. Now, most of my life I have been covered by health insurance but even in those few times when I had a lapse of coverage, health needs have come first. I suppose I am luck or blessed in this regard because many people have not had this luxury.
Tomorrow I have my second cataract surgery. This time on my right eye. I am apprehensive but I don't believe that I am as nervous as I was the first time. I do have high hopes for the results of the surgery and hope I can read and use my phone and iPad soon without any corrective lenses.
Colorado and beyond. I am planning another road trip this year. First stop Estes Park, Colorado. Lee and I will be driving to Estes Park on August 6 where we will meet Sharon and Peg. Sharon has been spending lots of time in Boulder at the Boulder School District and she and Peg planned a few days of hiking around Rocky Mountain National Park. Peg is flying in on a Thursday evening and Lee and I are scheduled to get there the same day. After a few days in Estes Park, Lee and Peg will fly home to Chicago and Sharon and I will spend a couple of days in Boulder together. While she is working I can get a few loads of laundry done for both of us and explore Boulder.Then, I will head to Redmond to spend a couple of weeks with my grand kids, and son and daughter-in-law and ex daughter-in-law. I will head towards Glen Ellyn on September 2 after Avery starts school. Sharon will fly to Boulder and spend Labor Day weekend with us. I plan on stopping to see Mt. Rushmore on the return trip. I have managed to ignore Mt. Rushmore during a number of trips past it. This time I will stop for a visit as I did Devil's Tower a couple of years ago. I hope to find a few other attractions/distractions on my way to and from Oregon.
Kids on bicycles are to be feared on the Prairie Path. It matters not whether they are four or fourteen, watch out for them as they are unpredictable. Adults are much better - as long as they on on the street or on the bike path. Let them get on a sidewalk and be very afraid as they seem to forget that they cannot simply ride acros the intersection without stopping or looking. I did find the official Illinois "Bicycle Rules of the Road." Of course they are like rules for motor vehicles - most people simply ignore them.

Friends And Independence Day

Larry and Dave visited us for Independence Day holiday weekend. We had a very nice visit focused on shopping, eating, and drinking. We've been out to breakfast at Jucy-O and Butterfield's. We had a fabulous breakfast at home. We've had dinner at home and Bien Trucha. We've had coffee at Starbucks. We had cocktails in the back yard. Sharon and the boys had cocktails at Weber Grill. We've been to Steinmart and to Von Maur. I scored a seersucker sport coat and two shirts at Steinmart. Sharon and Larry both got great deals at Von Maur. Larry bought a wallet at Louis Vitton and he is VERY proud of it. They went to the iStore and Larry got a new iPhone cover and Sharon took over his old one. Today Larry and Sharon are cooking gravy. One of Larry's talents is making really good Italian gravy. It will be great.
We managed to not go to the Glen Ellyn parade or fireworks (though we could not avoid the noise from the fireworks and the cats did not like the noise at all.)
Last night we had a very tasty early dinner at Bien Trucha. Sharon and the boys had sangria and I had a Tomatesta made with tomatillo, lime, mint and smoky vida mezcal. Yum. I also had a Michelada. Wow, never had one of those. Kind of a Mexican version of a bloody mary - but better. We sampled a number of Bien Trucha's small plates and all were delicious. Bien Trucha is an extension of A Toda Madre - which will open its second restaurant in Glen Ellyn sometime this summer. I am excited for their appearance here. We finished our evening with a trip to Von Maur, ice cream at Oberweis, and then trash TV at home.

Biking

Almost a month ago I decided to get back on my bicycle and get some exercise. I've worked up from once a week to twice a week. From about five miles to about twelve. In fact, my time to do twelve miles this week was about the same as doing five my first week. I am feeling stronger and I have dropped a few pounds. Now to see if I can keep it up. I need to lose 40 pounds before our next trip to Spain so that Sharon will let me wear a Speedo.

I've been going east and west from Glen Ellyn on the Prairie Path. Going west I go to and beyond Wheaton. Going east I have gone past Hwy 83 and Salt Creek to Elmhurst. They are both interesting rides and each very different. West is mostly along the Union Pacific tracks with lots of train action. East is mostly through residential areas. The people I see on the Prairie Path are much the same, but downtown Glen Ellyn seems to have more unsupervised children. Of course there are also unsupervised adults who need to be curbed. It seems a big portion of the bicycling population, both adults and children, were never properly taught the basics of riding. They ride on the wrong side of the road or path. They ride on sidewalks. They ignore traffic rules. They assume that if they are on a sidewalk they have the same rights as pedestrians. As someone who is largely a rules follower, I find this behaviour aggravating.

My next adventures will extend past the Prairie Path. North along the Great Western Trail and south to some of the Forest Preserve sites along Butterfield Road and beyond.

Claire Returns To China

Check out her blog to the left.

Writing

I watched a movie this past week that touched me in several scenes. (The Emporer, 2012 - Tommy Lee Jones) Near the end, General Fellers was reading letters written by Aya and saved by her uncle. What touched me was that these were letters, hand written on paper, that could be touched and felt and read and kept. When is the last time you wrote a letter? Received one? A long time for me. How about just writing on paper? These are skills we are losing. I write this on an iPad with a Bluetooth keyboard. I could even dictate it if I wanted and would not have to type. What are the chances of someone saving my writings and re-reading them after I am gone on whatever device they may me using? Photographs are facing a similar fate to letter wrting. We've gone digitl from beginning to end of the photographic process. I've got albums of photographs which include photos of my great grandpartents and other relatives. Some I cannot even identify but I can still hold them, touch them, enjoy them. Not so digital images. They end up in albums on my hard drive and on Google+ and Facebook but all in digital form - not something you can touch and feel.

 

Cataract Surgery Stage One

Yesterday I had cataract surgery on my left eye, remove natural lens and replace with an interocular lens. Today I am amazed at my ability to see brighter colors and to see without correction.

I did not realize how cataracts had changed my view of the world. Whites were not white anymore - they were yellow. Today I can look at a white wall or a piece of paper with my left eye and see bright white and with my right eye, beige or yellow. As the day goes on I realize more and more how the cataracts not only changed my visual acuity but also my perception of colors. I didn't know! Whiter whites! Bolder colors!

Original cat trap

Alternative cat tap

I've got some healing to do and my brain has to adjust to my new vision, but so far this experience has gone well and appears to be as life changing as I anticipated. I suspect my photography will change also as I see the world more clearly and brighter now.

 

Home

We are still setting into the routine of home. Sharon has been off to Boulder and now also to Racine. I've been trying to catch up on yard work and moving photos off of the camera's SD cards. Of course the cats are happy we are back and they have forgiven us for leaving them for so long.

Big changes in my life start tomorrow. Cataract surgery day. My left eye is first and I am of course nervous but also ready to do it. I believe I have written about this before, but this is a big step for me. I have worn glasses since I was two years old, and have worn contact lenses since I was 15. My left eye is considerably worse than my right eye, and I also do not have full vision across my left eye - it is as if there is a hole in my vision. Because of this I have alsways relied on my right eye for the majority of my vision - reading especially. Thus the nervousness about the surgery. The big change for me will be not needing to rely on glasses to see. Now, without my contacts or my glasses I am lost and cannot focus on anything near or far. Everything is a blur. After surgery, I should beable to see in mid to long distance without correction and only need glasses for near or reading. This will be a major adjustment.

This past weekend we drove up to St. Paul for a graduation party for Audra and Claire Dunvan. They have been part of our lives since they were infants and it is always a joy to spend time with them. I suspect now that they are college graduates we will se a bit less of them. We wish the best of success to both of them.

At the bus stop leaving Sitges, a rainbow.

 

The Wrap Up

We are now in the air flying west from Paris. Sharon, Katie, and I are on this flight and Jorge is on another from Barcelona to Newark. This morning we left the piso together and walked to the Mon-Bus stop, rode to the Barcelona airport, got checked in, had a bite to eat and then seperated. Jorge went to the United first class lounge and the rest of us to our gate. It was a very full but otherwise uneventful flight from Barcelona to Paris. In Paris we navigated from terminal 2F to 2E for our Chicago flight. The walk from 2F to 2E was much easier than when we came in to CDG a few weeks ago.

Our last day and evening in Sitges was quite a flurry of activity. There was last minute shopping, last minute laundry, packing, cleaning, and one last meal. Everyone, except me, wanted to try a new place for lunch. We found one and it was interesting if not all evenly wonderful. The Niña seemed to have some issues with consistency. Some dishes were excellent, some were not. For example, Jorge and I both chose asparagus and ham for our primero. There were four white asparagus stalks, three slices of cured ham, and a dollop of mayonaise. Not very attractive, and we expected jamon serrano and we got plain ham. For segundo Sharon and Katie ordered fiduea. It looked and tasted wonderful - and there was enough in the paella for four or five people.

Reflections on the past twenty six days. This is the first time I have had a vacation lasting more than about two weeks. I had no idea how I would adapt - and I have got to say that I adapted well. What worked best for me was when I followed a schedule (but then with ADD it is always best to follow a schedule). For example, we always went to Cafe Bar Roy for coffee in the morning. My routine there was to check on the latest world news, check in on Facebook, make a shopping list for the day, and plan any activities. Aside from this planning the main activity of the day was walking. We would walk around Sitges, walk to the market, walk to the wine store, walk to the bread store, walk to the fruit and vegetable store, walk to the meat and cheese store, walk to the beach, walk to lunch, and walk to the walk. I believe that the combination of walking and eating smaller portions and fewer meals has taken a little weight off. I will know next week when I go for a couple of check ups. Except for my feet hurting, I do feel better now than when I went to Sitges.

Let's talk health. The last few days have been bad on the neuopathy front - both for my hands and my feet. I don't know if this is simply from not seeing Melody and her Omdamed machine or something else. I've continued my regular supplements except for apple cider vinegar. I didn't bring any with me and didn't see it in any stores in Sitges. I had some breathing issues and had to use my inhaler. It could have been caused by the construction next door or some allergens. I was surprised.

Back to the twenty six day vacation - I can do it. And I can do it in one place. However, the big saving grace of Sitges is it's proximity to Barcelona. I think there is always something to see and do in Barelona. If I were in Sitges longer, I would have to branch out more. Trip to other cities in Spain both near and far. I would also have to learn Spanish other than the few words I now know. I could see myself spending a couple of months here. I played my uke a lot less than I hoped. The travel uke is good for travel but not nearly as much fun to play because the sound is not there.

While in Sitges we looked at pisos again with Katie and Jorge, and talked about buying one together, We looked at enough property to know what we would want - in the central part of old Sitges, an atico with a terraza that flows from the living/dining/kitchen area. The atico and hopefuly terraza have a view of the sea. Room for private space for all of us. At least two bedrooms and two baths but three is better. Nice kitchen. Washer and dryer. Can we live togeter? Perhaps. We do get along well enough to have spend a minimum of one week together for each of the past five years. Long term? Who knows. I could see coming to Sitges for a couple of months at a time a couple of times a year. We can live here about 180 days a year withot visa or employment issues. Our half of a piso will cost us around $250,000. Technically we can afford that - if we sell our house. If we were to buy a place we would want to rent it during the prime season - June, July, August, and the first half of September. This leaves us the the rest of September through May. I like being there in May. Would I feel the same about January and February? November? Would Sitges charm still be there when it was cold, or at least chilly and we would eat inside rather than out and not sit on the beach in the sun? Lots to sort out.