Roswell to Grand Canyon
June 16, 2022 - Reading time: 8 minutes

After checking out of the hotel, we spent about an hour in the International UFO Museum.  A very affordable $5 gets you an in-depth explanation of what the locals call “The Incident.” This is actually a much nicer exhibit than one might expect,  going beyond the 1947 event to discuss recent UFO anomalies and current space endeavors by NASA.  We picked up a few gift shop treasures on the way out and then it was off to Grand Canyon! 

This was another 9 hour driving day for my handsome.  He handled it like a champ. New Mexico has roadside signage denoting its “districts.”  This had James and me thinking of The Hunger Games. District 5 has the nicest roads and the most tumbleweeds.  We’re talking legit, as large as an exercise ball, tumbleweeds bouncing across the highway.  We actually had to brake for one!  It was extremely windy outside so catching one on camera proved futile. 

The majority of our travel today was on Interstate 40 which runs parallel to Historic Rte. 66.  We had to hop off at least once for gas and got a closer look at some of the mostly run-down (or abandoned) tourist traps of by-gone days.  There were some sections near larger towns where business along the Route was still thriving, so that was nice to see. 

As we approached Arizona, Google Maps warned us that our trip may be impacted by the Coconino National Forest wildfire.  We cringed.  I did a bit of quick Internet research for a live update.  The fire was north of our route and the wind (as we were experiencing first hand) was blowing to the north. Sure enough, a few hours later we spotted the enormous swath of smoke and haze hanging over the hill ridges in the distance.  Thankfully, it did not affect our drive time, but it was heartbreaking to witness.  And it will forever put news of such fires in perspective for us.  I understand now how they spread so quickly out here. 

Arriving at our hotel in Williams, Arizona, with an hour left until sunset, the day was holding the best for last.  We hightailed up Hwy. 64 to the Grand Canyon South Rim entrance.  It was the luckiest of timing. Truly.  Our first glimpse of this magnificent natural wonder found us with the sun setting over the cliffs to the west and a full moon rising in the eastern opposite end over a dusky blue sky.  It was stunning.  There was a hushed reverence among our little crowd of fellow onlookers at Mather’s Point.  I was moved to a few silent tears and I’m not one bit ashamed to admit it.  It seems unreal that such a place could exist.  James was speechless, too, for the first few minutes and later summed up our first look as “jaw-dropping.”  I completely concur.  We stayed for over an hour, sitting atop the flat rocky outcrop, gazing at sky, horizon, and layers upon layers of depth as the moon rose higher eastward while darkness fell westward.  The full moonlight was so clear and bright at that elevation (6000+ feet), the canyon looked like a giant spotlight was beaming down upon it, like a beacon from above.  The shadows at play were resplendent.  


It was nearly 11:00 pm before we made it to bed, exhausted, but too excited to sleep.  My head and heart were amped with anticipation for the full day of canyon hiking that the morning would bring.  

Such wonders.  Such wonders, indeed. 

Sunday Drivers
June 16, 2022 - Reading time: 7 minutes

We awoke early today, hugged our fellas goodbye, and began the road trip to Roswell.  Visiting the site of the alleged Area 51 alien crash has always been on James’s bucket list and it’s on the way to the Grand Canyon, so why not? 

The weather was beautiful all the way to New Mexico, though scorching hot outside, and the route was comprised entirely of non-Interstate, rural highways.  There were very few cars on the road which afforded us the opportunity to pull over for photos a few times.  

Things of interest included:

  • Clusters of flat-paddle cacti growing abundantly throughout the beautiful Texas hill country. 
  • Wind farm, after wind farm, after wind farm along Hwy. 89.  Our first sighting of them as we came over a ridge made our mouths drop. The wide open topography and clear weather permitted us to see these giant power producers for miles and miles in the distance, as well as up close. They are enormous. 
  • Oil wells.  Countless in number throughout north Texas.  They pumped up and down like giant metal birds pecking at the ground.  In one area they were intermingled among a wind farm.  A juxtaposition of energy in transition? Time will tell.  
  • An exit for Frazier Road! We resisted the urge to pull over to look for our people.  After all, the aliens were waiting. 




We lost cell service among the miles and miles of farmland about an hour before reaching the Texas/New Mexico border.  I had luckily printed directions for each destination from Google Maps before leaving home, though it felt overly cautious doing so at the time.  And the temperature outside kept climbing.  I’ve never been more thankful for the AC.  

We arrived in Roswell hungry for dinner.  There were alien photo ops all over town as one would expect.   Most of the museums and gift shops were closing by that time, so instead of rushing, we opted to search out a local food joint.  James had accomplished 9 hours of driving and was in the mood for a beer.  Turns out there are lots of kitschy alien adventures in Roswell, but only one local brewery.  It was  fantastic.  Small, but with a great selection on tap and a super friendly bar tender.  (I won’t list the name of the brewery because the grandmas have this blog link, but you can Google it if interested.) The food truck on site was authentic TexMex and our burritos were perfect.  

The hotel accommodations were comfy, too and we slept soundly without an alien abduction.  Well, at least we think we did. 

A Saturday in Austin
June 15, 2022 - Reading time: 8 minutes

Today’s fun included 3 rounds of Top Golf.  Two in the traditional sense and the final, a variation of Angry Birds.  I was no match for my three strapping golf mates and their ability to hit the ball quite far.  James outshined us all with distance and accuracy, but to be fair he was raised by a semi-pro.  I quite enjoyed the Angry Birds version of silly golf and my game improved a good bit after some practice and an entire pint of spiked pineapple punch.  I embraced the concept of “angry” as well by switching from a wedge club to a driver and just smacking the crap out of the ball.  It was cathartic.  

Afterwards we drove to an area in northwest Austin that is heavily influenced by Asian culture.  Our first stop was a cool little discount store with bargains galore.  This place had everything you never knew you needed such as a bamboo spatula with a smiley face carved right through the business end.  Doesn’t everyone need a spoon that is happy to see you?  Thank heavens their credit card machine was down or we would have shopped for extra luggage, too. 

Next we lingered in the Japanese bookstore where Preston purchased another Gundam model kit.  Assembling these little (and big!) guys have become a favorite hobby of his.  They have lots of movable parts and look just plain cool. 

Later we meandered through the enormous Asian supermarket and then settled into a booth for four at our final stop of the day.  It’s a foodie experience like no other and always a must-do on our trips to Austin:  conveyor belt sushi.  

The How-To:  Select your drinks from the screen above the table and a robot delivers them.  From that point forward, it’s an all out snatch and grab flurry of activity as attention turns to the selection of tapas-sized delicacies whizzing by for the taking on a conveyor belt next to your table.  Simply deposit each empty saucer into a slot beneath the conveyor.  With every 15 plates a prize ball rolls forth from a giant dispenser.  Think gumball machine.  The spoils of today’s meal were 3 tiny Puglie erasers attached to the end of bookmark paperclips.  Please don’t do the math.  We gorged on deliciousness and those boys can EAT. 

We went to bed that evening with food babies in our bellies.  Again.  If you leave Austin hungry, it’s your own fault.  




  

Adventure with Korean Cuisine
June 11, 2022 - Reading time: 4 minutes

The hubby arrived safely by plane yesterday afternoon despite a hiccup with parking at the Charleston airport which resulted in his first ever missed flight.  Oops.  Those of you who know James, also know that he is NEVER LATE for anything.  Fortunately, the good folks at Southwest were graciously accommodating and secured him a later flight without any added fees.  His feet were on Texas soil by 2:00 p.m.  I know I'm easily impressed by shiny things, but the concept of jetting about on this planet of ours to reach a destination thousands of miles of away in a few hours still blows my mind.  Having just taught a mini-lesson in April to my students about the history of the Wright Brothers' first flight at Kitty Hawk truly underscores just how far aviation technology has evolved in only one century.  We live in amazing times and more often than not we take that fact for granted. 

It got hot here yesterday, too.  The official high was 100 degrees with a "feels like" of 104.  Today and tomorrow are forecast to go even higher.  Even so, we opted for a dinner out last night that involved heat at a close range (but in an air conditioned restaurant) - Korean Barbeque.  Now, our little nuclear family have been sushi fanatics for as long as I can remember, including James who can be a somewhat picky eater.  He did, however, live a year in Japan as a boy, which instilled a more open-minded tolerance for vegetables served in Asian dishes.  But, last night we discovered that Korean Barbeque adds a whole new layer to enjoying delicious Asian cuisine.  

We were seated at a cozy table for four by the window.  In the center of the table, and you'll see this if you look closely at the photo, is an oversized metal hubcap-like grill for cooking. The boys had eaten here twice before and ordered the "All You Can Eat Premium Deluxe" option for the entire table, along with two bottles of Soju (more on that in a moment).  Minutes later our server arrived with four tall glasses of water and several side dishes including rice bowls, sweet corn, seaweed salad, kimchi (regular and spicy) and cold noodles (that's how they are traditionally served).  These were followed by a butcher board of three select cuts of raw seasoned pork, beef, and chicken.  She placed kitchen scissors and metal tongs alongside the board, lit the propane flame beneath grill, smiled warmly at us, declared, "Enjoy!" and then walked away.

The boys took immediate command.  They masterfully seared portions of each cut for several minutes, then distributed them among our plates.  This process was repeated at regular intervals and we feasted like royalty.  Yes, some of it was spicy, hence the copious refills of water, but it was all delicious.  I learned that I am a big fan of kimchi (regular and spicy) as well as seaweed salad, dishes I had never before tried.  I held my own with the chopsticks, too.  Well, except for an accidental slip of spicy red kimchi from my sticks and right into James's lap as we were posing for selfie. (Photo evidence provided below.)  He was wearing nice white cotton shorts.  Fortunately, his napkin was folded three time thick over the left leg where I dropped the food, so no harm, no foul.  

When the second round of butcher block meat cuts arrived, the boys took the liberty of ordering Soju, a traditional Korean rice wine consumed in shot glasses.  Sip or shoot, it's your call.  They ordered both the "fresh" and the "apple" versions.  Oh man...this stuff packs a punch.  Both were good, but the apple version is dangerous, dangerous, dangerous.  It tastes identical to a sour apple Jolly Rancher.  With a 12% ABV, it is candy juice for adults, indeed.  Is it no wonder we slept like we'd been knocked out last night? 


Appreciating the gift of simple pleasures
June 10, 2022 - Reading time: 5 minutes

Yesterday I awoke just after sunrise and took my grandpup on a walk.  He's a sweet old fluffy Malamute fella who behaves so well.  It was only 80 degrees outside with a cool breeze.  The forecasted highs exceed 100 the rest of the week, so we took our time around the neighborhood block and enjoyed the lovely morning at hand.  Sometimes I have to remind myself that strapping on tennis shoes for a walk doesn't have to include working up a sweat.  Yesterday I didn't need to remind myself because old dogs on a walk simply meander and it was just the speed I needed, too.  I took note of the tree branches and dark green leaves gently jostling about in the breeze.  The shadows at play on the sidewalk.  Manicured lawn shrubs.  Oh, and Central Texas has a bird species that one cannot overlook because of the unique sounds they make - Grackles.  They are large, crow-like black birds. I'm going to paraphrase information from the website All About Birds because they say it best:  Grackles make a guttural readle-eek followed by high-pitched whistles that are often described as sounding like a loud rusty gate.  Believe me.  It gets your attention.  

By midday I was relaxing on the sofa and reading more of my book.  My son and his husband both work remotely from home on teams with other computer engineers and software developers.  Their office spaces are quite the set up and my son manages four screens at the same time.  It's crazy impressive and a bit nuts.  But he loves it.  That was evident as I sat on the couch across the room from him, reading sure, but also sneaking looks at him over the top of my book while he was in his element.  Such pride fills this momma's heart.  During one of his breaks, he showed me what he does with each screen.  I compare it to the bridge of the Starship Enterprise.  He has a fancy hydraulic desk that he can raise to work standing or lower to work seated.  I did my best to stay quiet while he typed away on his backlit keyboard and participated in various virtual meetings throughout the day.  

Later in the afternoon, I received some sad news from back home.  I won't go into details here, but it was once again a reminder from life to slow down and appreciate the everyday moments, the small things that are really big ones to the heart.  Like simply being in the same room with my grown son, co-existing in common air space, knowing that my tribe is healthy, happy, cared for and loved.  He and I have lots of big adventures planned in the weeks ahead, but yesterday I needed to slow down and soak in the precious awareness of just being.  

After work, we headed to Pinthouse Pizza, locally owned and serving up hand-crafted, made to order pies and award winning beer.  It was fantastic.  We each ordered a different pizza so we could sample from all three.  Mine had an olive oil base with blue cheese, prosciutto, ultra thinly sliced pears, and drizzled with local honey.  Let me tell ya, "honey," don't knock it 'til you've tried it.  What a eclectic mix of savory and sweet.  Easily my new favorite.  I forgot to take a photo of it looking perfect upon delivery to the table because it smelled so wonderful that we attacked like ruffians.  You'll have to settle for the after effect of the carnage.  The beer hit the spot, too and we got a laugh out of the 'stache created by Preston's first sip of stout. 

I went to bed with a full belly and a grateful, yet melancholy mindset.  I awoke again this morning to a sleeping house and was treated to surprise cat snuggles to accompany my cup of coffee.  Hubby flies in later today and I look forward to his handsome smiling face and equally satisfying bear hugs. 

Life is short.  Take time today to treat yourself to something that brings you joy and allow yourself to just "be."  Love and hugs to every single one of you. 

Was that my left turn?

June 9, 2022 - Reading time: 6 minutes

I was too pooped to write last night about yesterday’s travels, so here ya go. 


Final morning at the resort found me walking the pier again to begin the day.  Had to stretch those legs before climbing back into the driver’s seat and besides, I couldn’t pass up a last chance to admire my Heron friends. One of them strutted about on the sidewalk, with a decent sized breakfast still wriggling in his beak for several minutes, as if to taunt the humans casting their reels nearby.  Cheeky fella. 

My own breakfast was a bacon/tomato/mushroom omelet with a side of grits. Yum! Then I hit the road about 9:30. 

Made it to Austin about 8:30 last night.  Yep.  Eleven hours for what should have been nine.  Driving recap:

Highs

  • Blue skies and fluffy white clouds all the way.  
  • Music streaming kept me singing along with a mix of genres including Jim Croce, One Republic, John Prine and the soundtrack to Les Miz, to name a few.  

Lows

  • The entire Interstate system of Texas is under road construction.  Ok, I exaggerate, but not by much.  Lots of white knuckle, steady hands required to navigate between those concrete barriers on I-10 with big rigs looming large in the next lane. 
  • The unfortunate timing of arriving in the Houston area at rush hour. Hence the extra two hours in the car.  

Wild, Wild West, indeed!  Waze directed me on an alternate route for awhile to circumnavigate the Interstate parking lot, but I missed a left turn in the heavy traffic and found myself frazzled downtown.  Oh, did I mention at this point I reeeeally had to pee?  Thank God for my years of teacher-bladder training! 

Fast forward four hours.  I arrived in the Austin driveway just before sunset and into the arms of my wonderful sons.  They helped unload the car and treated me to take-out Thai.  I’ll try to grab some photos of us all later today.