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.