Forty-One Years and Still Laughing

Frank and I celebrated our 41st wedding anniversary Tuesday, September 27th. It was a low key celebration but we did take note of the day and had dinner out. We had a $10 gift certificate to Strizzi's, an Italian restaurant downtown and decided to make use of it.

After enjoying a meal of lasagna and salad for me, and an entree of sausage fettuccini with a glass of wine for Frank, we ordered some minestrone soup and dessert to go to have another day. Frank took a photo of me smiling.

Then I took a photo of him grinning. I think I caught him reaching for his wallet. I wonder how many times he has done that in our 41 years of marriage, not to count the preceding couple years of courtship.

We asked the waiter to take a picture of the two of us together. No selfies for this couple. I have tried, but can never seem to get the angle right. We wind up with fun-house  mirror distorted facial images taken from a very unflattering angle. Maybe I need to invest in one of those selfie sticks. Somehow I think that is gadgetry for another generation.

They say long-married couples begin to look like each other. Could it also be their individual senses of humor morph into one? Before we left I made a pit stop at the restrooms near the rear of the restaurant. This sign on the door to outside tickled my funny bone. Frank thought it was comical, too. If it were truly an emergency, would you take your time opening the door? After 41 years together Frank and I tend to laugh at the same things - even signs by bathroom doors.

As I was surfing the web looking for some sort of image that represented two blobs of humor melding together, I came across this quote instead. I think it is a preferable finish to this post.

Cavalia OdysseO

Saturday, September 17th, Frank and I went with our friend Vickie to see the Cavalia show OdysseO performed in a big white tent near the 280 Freeway in San Jose. When I say big I mean BIG. The performance tent is called the White Big Top and is as tall as a ten story building. It is the largest of the nine tents total in the compound. Considering this is a mobile show, the size and complexity is quite impressive. The White Big Top is currently the largest touring tent in the world.

The performance was overflowing with graceful, impressive equine acts replete with colorful costumes and breathtaking staging. The horses are majestic and their interaction with the humans is very moving. I think the scenery was projected by a large state-of-the-art system, similar, I suspect, to the type used in the opening show of the recent 2016 summer Olympics in Rio. Horses paraded and pranced amid expansive, green, countryside vistas or up and down stark, brown, dune panoramas.

There were exhilarating acts where skilled, daring equestrians vaulted on and off horses and did acrobatic gyrations while the noble steed pounding along at galloping speed. Interspersed with the horse performances were acrobatics and tumbling that rivaled the recent gold medal olympic performances in height and revolutions and complexity all without the aid of spring loaded flooring. Indeed, Wikipedia sums up Cavalia as "a fresh mix of equestrian and performing arts, multimedia and special effects, innovatively integrating acrobatics, dance, aerial stunts and live music."

There were also graceful, gliding, culturally-artful aerial performances in the style of Cirque de Soleil with soaring graceful poses and flights wrapped in long long silk streamers. The similarity exists with good reason. The show was conceived by Normand Latourelle, one of the co-founders of the famed Cirque du Soleil. Pictures were not allowed during the show so these were taken from large canvas screens in the courtyard where spectators could roam during the intermission. I think Frank is imagining that the ethereal, beautiful, young woman is beckoning to him and he is welcoming her with open arms.

Per Wikipedia, Cavalia is a fabricated word, inspired by the Spanish and French words for horse (caballo and cheval) and the English word cavalry. In 2004 I had gone to see the show with my daughter Robin and my sister Maxine when it was touring near San Francisco. Then, if I remember correctly, it was horses only and focused predominantly on the relationship between humans and horses. The equine aspect is still what truly defines the show. The horses are statuesque and awesome. Interesting enough they are all stallions and gelding - no mares. We learned that training some of them can take as long as six years.

We did not have the opportunity to interact with the horses themselves but Vickie and I did interact with their images. This photo was taken within the darkened lobby of the performance tent. Note the striking similarity between Vickie's hair and the horse's mane. I am kind of partial to this subdued image.

Outside after the show we took a few more photos. Vickie poses beside the horses with the billboard freeway sign advertising the show in the background.

It was Frank's idea to have me imitate the pose of the young girl among the horses.

He also thought this rider and me had similar smiles. I guess we were just horsing around but we had fun doing it.

Tickets were expensive but I do not think there was a truly bad seat in the house tent. The show had a wide ranging mix of intense, action-packed acts and relaxed, museum-paced art-like scenes. The show was memorable, the physical prowess of the performers was awesome, the glacier scene at the finale was beyond beautiful. 

Totally Trains in Danville

Sunday 9/11/16 Frank and I went with Alex to a model train exhibition at the historic train station in Danville.

In an anteroom was a display of various railroad related items. Alex got to sound the dinner chimes reminiscent of the call to dinner in elegant diner cars of yesteryear.

In the same shelving area, off in the corner behind him was a classic handbook. I would imagine the pages are pretty fragile after 90 years so the sign admonishes "Please Do Not Touch." I did check on Amazon and the book is available. I really wanted to locate an Amazon option with a Look Inside ⏎ logo but no such luck. I guess the contents will remain a mystery for me; my curiosity as an engineer had been piqued. Was there more within than merely steam tables?

At the opposite end of the shelving alcove was this chart of Hobo Signs and Symbols. I wonder how true and prevalent their usage was, or is.

On the floor in the anteroom was a bellows arrangement that if you pressed or stepped on a green button you were rewarded with a train whistle sound emanating from six brass pipes. The only difficulty was that the brass tubes were not wedged in very securely and kept falling out.

Alex was more engaged in "fixing" the pipes than making the sound. He was serious enough in his endeavors that he got down on one knee to concentrate better. To him it was like the manipulative game of placing pegs in holes.

Aha! Success at last. Alex admires his achievement. Near his right hand you can see the sign that reads "Push the green button to hear the train whistle." At the top of the bellows is the button to push.

Upon entering the main room housing the train layout, you faced a small commemorative sign honoring those who had fallen or died during the September 11th terrorist attacks.

Off aways from the main layout was a wooden toy train layout allowing hand-on play. Alex's main self-appointed task was installing all the cars in the roundhouse.

Near the exit doors was a railroad sign themed bank for donations. Since Alex loves banks, and since we wanted to support the trains of course, Frank and I gave him all our change to deposit. The slot is in the red band  immediately below the cross rails.

When our change ran out we started feeding him dollar bills. That slowed him down a bit because they had to be folded neatly and compressed to fit within the narrow entry slot.

Then Alex discovered the top could be removed, just like on his bank at home. He appears to study it intently here.

Then Alex transfers his gaze to the base of the tube bank. You can almost see the wheels in his head turning.

"Hmmm... There is a big source of money to put in the bank. No need to bother mom and dad."

"I will just get it for myself." Frank and I are all for fostering independence but this...?

I think this donation area is a good place for one of those hobo symbols.

The volunteer staff were very accepting of Alex and were bemused at his antics. Alex did not abscond with any of the funds during this visit. It livened up their day and I think we will be welcomed back.

Just to be certain, maybe next time we go here we will be on the lookout for signage. Perhaps this hobo symbol will be deployed.

Ponder Post: Complaint Free World

I am usually slow to jump onto the bandwagon for "world-revolutionizing" ideas. I read Made to Stick and Switch by Chip and Dan Heath in 2014 when they were written in 2007 and 2010 respectively. A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen was published in 2007 – yep, a full decade ago – and I have just now discovered it. But if an idea is good or relevant it stays around for a bit. Complaining seemed a very relevant topic this presidential election year and as I age in general so this book appealed.

The mechanism of the movement is a bit of a gimmick. Wear a purple bracelet on your wrist and every time you find yourself complaining, switch it to the other wrist. Since it takes 21 days to form or break a habit, so research suggests, your goal is to go 21 consecutive days without having to move the bracelet. If you slip up and complain you must start again at Day 1. Participants in the program quickly learned it is not as easy as it sounds.

The book is organized into four parts that define the stages of becoming complaint free:

1. Unconscious Incompetence - you do not even know you are complaining
2. Conscious Incompetence - you are aware you are complaining but do so anyway
3. Conscious Competence - you recognize and can stop a complaint before it leaves your lips
4. Unconscious Competence - you stop complaining without much effort

The book addresses several queries and challenges by definition and anecdotal example. What is a complaint, any way? It involves grief, pain, or discontentment. A complaint is determined by the feeling or motive behind the statement. "It is hot." Is this a statement of fact or a complaint? If it is voiced by a weather man it is probably just a fact. If it is voiced by an impatient individual sitting in an non-air-conditioned car at a red light that seems stuck, it probably is a complaint.

Isn't complaining justified? Where would our nation be if the early colonists had not complained? The key point here is that it was not their complaints that brought about change, but their actions.

The benefits of a complaint free environment are touted. The overall tone becomes one of focusing on the positive rather than the negative and life becomes more enjoyable. Become aware of a typical conversation. One person complains, another joins in the conversation expressing commonality by relating his comparably bad or even worse experience. The conversation escalates, or perhaps I should say degenerates, into a morass of unpleasantness. If complaints were eliminated from that conversation the result would be a happier ambience... or perhaps no ambience at all. Beware of those friends or acquaintances with whom all you have in common is negativity. Is your only topic of conversation complaining?

I checked this small 5"x8"x¾" book out of the library and read it in one sitting. It inspired me enough to try this complaint-free attitude on for size. I am not doing the bracelet thing. I would probably get a rash beneath it. See? Funny or complaining? I think I am only at stage 2 where I recognize where I am complaining but am not skilled enough to stop it. I recommend giving A Complaint-Free World a try. The writing style is simple, the examples are decidedly illustrative, many of the stories are exceedingly touching, and the results are much more than I expected. There were many points that got my attention and merit further consideration. The anecdotal story involving this saying is memorable. Read it for that alone.

Ponder Post: After You

The novel After You is a sequel to the book Me Before You, both by Jojo Moyes. This as another August read for me but I been remiss in posting my review. Let's see what I remember.

I'd reviewed the first book Me Before You in my post dated June 28, 2015.  Me Before You was also made into a movie which I saw and liked a few months ago in June 2016. The novel After You was written in response to numerous requests the author received from her readers who wanted to know what had happened to the main character Louisa. It is not absolutely necessary that you read the first book or see the movie before reading After You, but I would advise that you do. In the sequel, Jojo Moyes is attentive to clueing readers in to past occurrences so they won't be totally in the dark plot-wise, but the readers will miss the wealth of character development from the initial novel. I think it is that development of the character of Luisa that had readers begging for more.

The next paragraph reveals some of Me Before You. It is difficult to review a sequel without giving away parts of the prequel. Reading on is safe for After You but will reveal parts of Me Before You.

Luisa in After You is trying to build a life for herself after her experience in supporting Will, the quadriplegic man she had grown to love. She'd stayed by his side at his request during his medically assisted suicide at a facility. He'd left her some money to start a new life over and to travel at his request to some of the places he's told her he'd loved. She does tour for a short time but during that time her struggles and self-doubts are very real. She flagellates herself with the lack of conviction that she had tried hard enough to change his mind. Another aspect of the situation I had not considered before reading this book was the aftermath of her decision to support Will in his end of life choice. While Luisa was attempting to recover from personal loss, those morally opposed to assisted suicide scorned her, or even shunned her, for her actions. It is hard enough to live with the death of one you love, but to endure public humiliation and rejection by some family members as well, will make the road to recovery all that more difficult.

All is not a downer however. Many characters are still supportive of her decision - her sister, Will's nurse, Will's parents to name a few. Farther along in her period of loneliness and grieving, Luisa does have several new people enter her life, two especially in a very positive and uplifting way. The character development of these two is very well done. I was very much engaged with Luisa's interactions and growing relationship with each of them. Luisa forges ahead with her life. I got a real kick out of a couple plot twists I had not seen coming. There are some riveting action scenes. The sequel is not quite as good as the original but very near. I would rate it just below four stars.

Ponder Post: Night Road

I read Night Road by Kristin Hannah in August shortly after returning home from a July trip to Oklahoma where we celebrated Isaiah's first birthday. It was not the read of a captured passenger on a plane flight. Rather it was the willing, relaxed read of a weary traveler, recently home from a trip and not having the gumption to tackle anything more energetic than reading a novel and doing laundry. I have a memory-determined deadline once I've read a book. The more time that elapses before that deadline, the more likely I am to have forgotten what I read and whether I liked it or not. Much beyond that deadline I even forget if I have read the book. The publishing of this post occurs barely under the wire of reaching that deadline. Writing the post for this book was delayed by an intervening visit from my sister in early September. I also needed to build up my energy and inspiration to write this book review.

Night Road by Kristin Hannah tells the tale of a helicopter mom and her interactions with her twin son and daughter. Some of the relationships between the brother and sister and between the mother and her children seemed a bit warped to me, even after removing the hovering aspect from the equation. A parallel storyline in the novel focuses on a young girl from the foster care system who just does not seem to get a fair shake in life, through no fault of her own. The characters from these two worlds interact in a manner of mutual acceptance. There is not the stereotypical snobbery and resent of entitlement in their relationship, which is refreshing.

This novel, however, seemed undecided on its focus. In some chapters the routine advantages afforded the privileged are contrasted with the struggles of those with limited opportunities due to a low economic status. Unfair practices of the prison system are revealed and made me really mad. Other chapters explore the issues of teen age partying, drugs, and drunk driving and how parents can best guide their children through this field of landmines on their path to responsible adult hood. Yet parents also need to learn how to let go. Some chapters address depression and others relate the agonies and ecstasies of teen love. I thought some practices that parents consider routine were painted in a light that makes them very worthy of evaluation and reconsideration. Since I am an empty nester, I have already dealt with all the challenges of college applications and admission, and learning to drive, and battles for independence. I was not the target audience of this novel but nevertheless it was thought provoking to a limited extent for me. 

I have read Kristin Hannah's other works On Mystic Lake (1999), Summer Island (2001), Distant Shores (2002), Firefly Lane (2008), Home Front (2012),  and liked them all but Summer Island (see post for November 18, 2014). Night Road (2011) is a reasonable good, but not stellar, novel. It was engaging but a bit slow-paced for my taste. I imagine its appeal would be greater for those in the midst of raising adolescents or having daily contact with them.

Ponder Post: Mary Poppins

Eight weeks. It took me eight weeks to post about our outing with Alex to the July 24th Sunday matinee of the musical Mary Poppins at our local Bankhead Theatre. I have so many good things to say about it though, that I decided skipping the post, even though very delayed, was not an option. Hmmm – I am beginning to see the perks with Instagram.

Alex really liked the show (understatement). This was not the first time we have seen it. A few years ago, Dan and Carrie had gifted Frank and me tickets to an original Broadway production of the musical when its tour brought it through San Jose. We enjoyed it and went a second time while it was still at the same venue so we could take Alex. In 2013 amateur rights were made available for production by local theaters and that is why we were able to take Alex to see it again here in town. The following photo shows the poster for our local theatre beside the original London poster. My guess is that the scattered bits of pink in the UK version are blossoms from Cherry Tree Lane.

Per the Wikipedia article on the musical, the show originally opened in the UK. Author Pamela Travers "only agreed to a stage production as long as the creators were all English, and no one who had worked on the film." If you have never seen this musical, do not expect a live version of the Disney movie. That is one of the reasons we initially previewed it before taking Alex. The stage production is a blend of the Pamela Travers book series and the Disney movie. The musical is a bit more sombre. In fact, producers of the show in the UK banned children below 3 years old from entering the theatre, deeming the show too scary for young children. The show was officially tagged in the UK as being "for children seven years and up". Parts of it are a "good nanny vs. bad nanny" differences of opinion. As an example, one of the songs is Brimstone and Treacle, sung by Mr. Banks' nanny when he was a child; here is an excerpt from those lyrics.

          Brimstone and treacle and cod liver oil
          Liberal doses of each
          These are the treats from which children recoil.
          The lessons I'm going to teach

          Brimstone and treacle and carbolic soap
          These are the tools of my trade
          With spoonfuls of sugar you don't have a hope
          Of seeing that changes are made

The presumed scariness does not phase Alex in the least. It is loud. It is dramatic. Alex is perfectly OK with it. The song Super-cali-fragilistic-expiali-docious is still there and accompanied with some fantastically fast arm movements executed in unison by the cast. Picture a jam-packed dance floor where the crowd is signing the Village People's YMCA on quadruple fast forward. Step in Time is still accompanied by a dynamic dance scene. Alex is excited by both and claps throughout.

Whenever we go to the theatre Alex is very intent on leafing through his program. Mary Poppins was no different.

Coincidentally in the lobby of the Bankhead we ran into one of Dan's close friends from high school, Sarah, with her husband and two kids. They were out to enjoy the show, too.

The theater lobby usually hosts a rotating art display of some sort. This time there happened to be a unique fashion display titled Recycled Runway.

Alex was not at all interested but I thought it worthy of at least a couple of photos. This basic little black dress for example...?

Look closely. Its "fringe" is constructed from snipped up credit cards.

This raincoat was made from cut up feed bags, a somewhat different take on the "Call of the Wild".

The style and flow of this dress of recycled fabrics is reminiscent of the costuming of the Pearly Kings and Queens of London's working class. It brings to my mind the tone of the same era in which the Mary Poppins story is set.

It reminded me of the ladies in the "pearlies" band from this scene in the Mary Poppins movie where they sing Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay.

All in all we had a great time because the show was
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

Maxine's Visit – Local Livermore Leg

The second part of my sister Maxine's visit was closer to home around the Livermore area where we attended some shows, watched movies, shopped, and sewed. For the first part of her visit, see my previous post for September 1st titled Maxine's Visit – Southern California Leg.

SHOPPING, SEWING, MOVIES

Friday, August 26th, even though a bit tired from our travels to So Cal, Maxine and I set out to attend an open house of Moda Fabric designer Sandy Klop. "It is about 35 minute ride up north to Walnut Creek," I told my sister, "perhaps a bit more because I am making a minor detour to pick up up a quilter friend along the way. I suspect we will stay there 30-45 minutes." The ride was indeed short. But once there, we stayed close to three hours and had a blast! (See post Purchases at American Jane Open House in my quilt blog for 8/27/16.)

Our sewing and fabric frenzies, temporarily paused over the weekend, were resumed on Monday August 29th. This time the binges were staged in my sewing room, sewing pillowcases and ogling fabric. Much of Tuesday, August 30th was jam packed with more sewing and Maxine's introductory lessons and practicing on the use of my long arm quilting machine. (See post Sewing with my Sister in my quilt blog for 8/30/16.) The cat WIMA was sacked out on the window seat in the master bedroom during our follies and projects. She managed to get in a cat nap despite our laughter and noisemaking just a few doors away. This photo is not quite her norm. For some inexplicable reason she usually sleeps right on the printed rope tassel. Perhaps she thinks it camouflages her?

We did take a break from our sewing Monday and Tuesday to get out of the house for a car ride to do some home decor perusing in the Home Goods near me. Both Maxine and I like to pass the time browsing this store and doing it together was even better. I hammed it up for a glam shot by the traffic light. It "stopped" me from buying anything.

We were spectators at times, rather than shoppers and doers. On three evenings we just sat back and watched a few movies. When I list them here I see we were rather one-minded on theme. Oh, well. So what if they were all Cinderella based chick flicks? It was relaxing and fun and if you dozed off during it you did not miss much of the plot line. Enchanted was great for the music, Ever After was unique for the slight twist in the classic story, and the Disney's Cinderella was awesome for the costuming. A great trio for a movie marathon.

THEATRE

On Saturday, August 27th Maxine Frank, our friend Vickie, and I went to a performance of The New Mikado at our local Livermore theatre, the Bankhead. It was an updated twist on Gilbert and Sullivan's classic Mikado, the comic opera set in Japan that pokes fun at British politics. The tweaked version we enjoyed was set in Italy and was performed by a theatre group called the Lamplighters.

The fun of Gilbert and Sullivan is in the off beat rhymes and fast paced lyrics. (Think, "I am the very model of a modern major general..." from Pirates of Penzance.) This theatre group projects the lyrics above the stage so you can read them and catch the humor real time. I think my favorite song is sung by the man who has a quota of executions he must perform and so must create The List of his future victims. Here are part of the lyrics. I know it is a lot but these are my favorites. I had a hard time down-selecting.

Verse 1 sets up the premise...

As some day it may happen that a victim must be found, 

I’ve got a little list—I’ve got a little list
Of society offenders who might well be underground,
And who never would be missed—who never would be missed.

The Chorus justifies his selections...

He’s got ’em on the list—he’s got ’em on the list,

And they’ll none of ’em be missed—they’ll none of them be missed.

Verse 2 enumerates potential victims with great accuracy

The self-righteous Prius driver with his fifty M.P.G.,
And the urban bicyclist—I’ve got them on the list—
And who goes first at four-way stops? Why me, me, me, me, ME!
The traffic anarchist—he never would be missed.

And the dinner guest announcing that she’s vegan, gluten-free,
Just as you serve Beef Wellington, your gourmet specialty.
She nibbles at a radish, gastronomic terrorist—
I don’t think she’ll be missed—I’m sure she’ll not be missed.

Verse 3 cites, even more uproariously, appropriate choices for the list

The idiot chasing Pokémon who walks right into you—

The phone clutched in her fist—I’m sure she won’t be missed,
And the fool who voted BREXIT and then googled “What’s EU?”
Unthinking sep’ratist—I’ve got him on the list.

And that ranting demagogue, the xenophobic billionaire—
(I’m sure you know the one I mean—the ego with the hair).
But it really doesn’t matter whom you put upon the list,
For they’d none of ’em be missed—they’d none of ’em be missed!

Chorus

You may put ’em on the list—you may put ’em on the list, 

And they’ll none of ’em be missed—they’ll none of them be missed!

We came home after the show in an upbeat mood and had a quick but delicious dessert before retiring to bed. Tomorrow was going to be another busy day.

CIRCUS

Sunday, August 28th was our day with Alex at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus – the Greatest Show on Earth. In the parking lot some friendly folk took a picture of the four of us beside one of the circus trailers – one from far away to get in all the writing on the trailer and one close up so you can tell it is really us. 

I think a lion king shirt is an appropriate choice for Alex to be wearing to a circus, don't you?

I'll admit. I was dubious about the upcoming show. How can a circus really be a circus without elephants, the iconic symbol of the big top? Come to think of it, few circuses are held in a big tent any more either, so I guess anything is possible. The theme of this show was Out of This World,

My doubts were for naught. It was GREAT! Our seats were centrally located (Section 101) and close up (row 5). I show this picture not only to document Alex once again devouring his customary tub of popcorn but also to illustrate the great view we had. The show was also on ice at one end of the arena.

Before the show began, as the seats were gradually getting populated, an animal trainer instructed the audience how the tigers and lions are taught to follow commands. Later on in the show this same trainer had a large repertoire of creatures other than the big cats perform – llamas, huge hogs, goats, etc.

In the opening, suspended from the the ceiling high overhead around the perimeter of the arena were six to eight of these spheres housing extremely limber, extremely daring aerialist/gymnasts flowing languidly from one pose to another, while opening and closing the hinged ball. They were mesmerizing. Even Alex, popcorn and all, stayed engaged watching them.

The next act was a balancing act that was equally, if not more, impressive, than the opening and closing spheres. This is where the theme out of this world began to make sense to me. The lighting and special effects really made you feel you were in outer space. The aerialists, dressed in space suits like astronauts and moving in very slow almost weightless motion added to the serene, almost eerie, environment.

This rotation device was in the very center so we were directly in front of it. Our view was not from the side, but head on. That perspective really impressed on me just how high up they were and just how narrow a rail or wheel of track they were traversing. The track is the thin band in the center of the photo in the center of the rink. Equally amazing is watching the riggers swap out the equipment for each performance, assembling and disassembling complex structures in a matter of minutes, often in the dark, while another act continued on elsewhere.

In a Cirque de Soleil style, the show had an overriding tale woven throughout it about the search for the greatest circus act, a sort of villain versus noble ringmaster competition. In my opinion this neither added nor detracted from the show. There were still the classic funny multiple dogs acts, trapeze acts, and horse trick rider acts that you come to expect of a circus. They seemed to have a new spin though. 

Several stilts/high-off-the-ground oriented acts were added. A basketball game on unicycles was extra comical – especially when you got to the dunking part on the super tall unicycle. 

Synchronized and formation ice skating on stilt-fitted blades gave third dimension possibilities when elevating the skaters above the ice. Can you imagine that degree of difficulty that must add to your skating skills?

We had a fantastic time at the "updated" circus and Alex stayed engaged throughout all of it, which made Frank and me even happier.

As we filed out, we got an added bonus. Maxine and Eric, her son, are huge Sharks fans. The event center in San Jose where the circus was held is also known as The Shark Tank because it is home rink to the hockey team. We were allowed to pass along an exit route with an elevator and fewer stairs to accommodate special needs. Along the way we photo-documented that she had been there among the Sharks memorabilia. There was a photo montage along the hallway walls.

Although it was closed, she posed beside the Sharks Store.

She peered in the windows.

The four of us had a casual dinner at Red Robin before dropping Alex off at his home and driving back to Livermore. The front half of a bright red Chevy in the lobby of that restaurant never fails to amuse me.

DEPARTURE FOR HOME

Maxine flew back to North Carolina in the afternoon of Wednesday, August 31st. It had been a long-awaited visit and worth every minute of the wait. We'd done a variety of activities, not only in the sewing and fabric areas of interest, but also in travel-within-travel visiting grandkids and in exploring a children's museum. We threw in enough sedentary time passers like, theatre, circus and chilling out with movies to keep us slightly short of the borderline of exhaustion. We laughed and we laughed and we were both still smiling when she left.

As sisters there are certain traditions. The mutual strangulation photo we took for posterity had to be posed by the front door when she was leaving.

Thanks for coming, Maxine! It was a blast having you here.