OKC 4 of 5: Saxophone & TV & Games May 12

Tuesday, May 12 Robin had meetings with out of state co-workers that she had to attend. Jeremy took off from work and dedicated a couple hours mid-day to Park Day at Isaiah's school. It is Isaiah's last week before summer break and Park Day is one of several fun activities planned. Parent participation is encouraged and Isaiah loved having his dad there. Ya gotta take advantage of those opportunities before the teen years of parental avoidance start.

After work on Tuesday Robin and Jeremy attended a press-the-flesh type dinner with Robin's out of town co-workers. Frank and I had a chance to bond with Autumn and Isaiah on their home turf throughout the evening.

Autumn got out her saxophone and played for us. She just started this school year and I was impressed with her progress. She sight read several songs from a music book I had brought for her.

To encourage her budding interest, I also made her a project bag for her music or anything else saxophone related (or even non-related). Some closeups and the details of my making it are in my other blog DianeLoves2Quilt in a post dated 4/16/26.

I also made an item to suit Isaiah's interests, a crocheted Wooble raccoon named Scooter. Isaiah loves these crocheted critters. He visits the Woobles web site and has made a prioritized list of those he would like for me to make for him. Scooter is the fifth and most recent. Details are in my other blog DianeLoves2Quilt in a post dated 4/20/26. That post also contains a list of links and snapshots of the previous four I have made for him. Isaiah has read all of those posts. All five Woobles are lined up on the game table in the photo after Scooter.

Isaiah's Woobles can also be found on his lap as he watches TV. They are definitely an eclectic crew. I picked a movie to watch with Isaiah. I assured him that if he did not like it several minutes into it, we would switch to another of his choice. I did rule out one category of his favorite — YouTube movies of video games played and recorded by some random individual out there in the digital universe. Personally, I do not see the allure, but perhaps Isaiah is honing his gaming skills by gleaning playing strategies during observation.

The movie on Netflix that I picked for us to watch together was Remarkably Bright Creatures. I had read the book several years ago and had really enjoyed it then. Sally Fields plays the starring role of a lonely widow who works as a cleaning lady at an aquarium. Correction: Sally Fields plays the starring human role. Marcellas is the octopus star. Per an article from Octonation.com

Marcellus has a real-life muse, and her name is Agnetha. She’s a three-year-old giant Pacific octopus living in the Pacific Canada Pavilion at the Vancouver Aquarium, and she’s the reason Marcellus moves and looks the way he does on screen. The entire CGI Marcellus was built from hours of footage of Agnetha that VFX lead Chris Ritvo and director Olivia Newman captured at the aquarium. Think of it like rotoscoping (the old animation trick of tracing live-action film frame by frame): every Marcellus arm curl, every color shift, every long stare through the glass is based on something Agnetha actually did.  ...  Agnetha appears in the actual movie! Real footage of her is intercut with the CGI throughout the film.

I kept observing Isaiah to see if he was enjoying the movie or merely being polite. The underwater scenes were awesome. He was really in to it! I was impressed with his depth of empathy and understanding, which I thought was more developed than what I would have expected in a ten-year old boy. He saw a photograph of the cleaning lady, Tova, with a man and young boy. He commented, "She must be a widow who lost her son". Also when Tova kept the door closed to a room, Isaiah guessed correctly that it had been her son's. Isaiah got was so engaged at one point he chastised me, "Aw, Grandma! You made me get all emotional over a squid!" Luckily it was a good choice of movie. I highly recommend watching it if you have not yet seen it.

Later on Autumn picked something for me to watch. It is called The Amazing Digital Circus. Wikipedia lists its genre as "adult animation, dark comedy, psychological drama, and surreal comedy", an apt description on all counts. Autumn warned me, "Grandma, it's weird." I watched the first episode and part of the second with her and she is so right. I intend to watch the follow-on episodes after travel back home from OKC, but so far, I have only watched one more. I will persist. 

The premise is that a bunch of extremely creatively-drawn characters go on a series of adventures within an amazing circus that they cannot escape. When they get emotionally distraught they "glitch" — black, jagged, spiky images — like any streaming transmission is wont to do. Here is a YouTube trailer that may explain it best — if it can be explained at all.

The Amazing Digital Circus features a main cast of six humans trapped in a virtual reality simulation, overseen by an erratic AI ringmaster, named Caine and his bubbly, floating, and obedient sidekick name Bubble. Their following descriptions should allow for matching them with the previous illustration:

Pomni: The newest human to join the circus. She is a jester whose design features a panic-prone, wide-eyed expression and a colorful jester hat.

Jax: A tall, purple, rabbit-like humanoid who is known for being a mischievous and cynical prankster.

Ragatha: A kind, optimistic, and motherly ragdoll who often tries to keep everyone's spirits up.

Gangle: A timid and melancholic ribbon-wearing humanoid whose comedy and tragedy masks change based on her current emotional state.

Kinger: The longest-residing human in the circus. He is a chess piece-themed character who is paranoid and slightly unhinged.

Zooble: A cynical, gruff character made of various modular, geometric toy parts that can be detached and rearranged.

Screen time sometimes get a bad rap. I got some insight into my two grandkids watching shows with them. But we also played two games Uno and Apple to Apples. Did Autumn pick those games because she thought we could handle them? If so, I choose to be pleased with her thoughtfulness rather than be offended by her possibly low assessment of us. She does have adequate data from other times we have been there and had our eyes glaze over as we struggled to learn more complicated role playing games. So how did we do with the games she selected? 

With Hello Kitty UNO we did OK but did hesitate just a bit because the stylized icons for Reverse and Draw 2 in the Kitty version were sometimes a bit obtuse for Frank and me since we'd never confronted them before. UNO is a classic game that has reached icon status and those stylized directions should have been obvious to Frank and me. You do not need to know the name Nike to know what a check mark means nor do you need to know the word McDonald's to recognize the golden arches. But we figured those UNO icon out and soldiered on ... and lost.

Apples to Apples was a bit more transparent. In this game a player sets out a green adjective card and the other players put out the best choice among the red noun cards they are holding in their hands to match it. The person who set out the green descriptive card is the judge and also the player who picks the best red naming card to go with it. Although this game is straight forward there was a definite division between the way the minds of the young and the minds of the old think. Invariable, and not with cheating of any sort, Isaiah and Autumn tended to pick the card of their sibling while Frank and I tended to pick the card of our spouse. Surely this phenomenon was not random but rather more evidence of a generational diversity of experiences and brain processing.

While Robin and Jeremy were out of the house, between TV and games Frank and I took advantage of a wonderful opportunity to get to know our grandkids better. Chilling at home has its rewards. Frank and I reaped those rewards that evening.

OKC 2 of 5: Post Show & Mothers' Day May 10

After the final matinee performance of Legally Blonde Jr. on Sunday, May 10th, we came back to chill at Robin and Jeremy's house. Waiting at the front door was an arrangement of flowers from Dan and Carrie for me for Mothers' Day. What a nice surprise!

As usual when we visit I bring several gifts items and some of these are what we explored, gathered around the kitchen table or game table that evening.

Spicy Hot Jelly Beans

Jelly Belly Fiery Five is a progressively spicy line of jelly beans that scales from mild to extreme. They pack genuine chili heat made with real pepper purées. The flavor lineup includes Sriracha, Jalapeño, Cayenne, Habanero, and Carolina Reaper. Because the top flavors are scorching, Jelly Belly recommends them only for healthy adults over 13. Hotness is measures in Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Frank and I had picked up some packets at our tour of the Jelly Belly Factory on March 15th specifically to bring to Oklahoma with us.

#1 Sriracha: A sweet, tangy introduction. Mildly hot, similar to a standard buffalo sauce.
Scoville Heat Units (SHU): ~2,200
#2 Jalapeño: Noticeably zesty and vegetal, tasting genuinely of real jalapeños.
Scoville Heat Units (SHU): ~5,000
#3 Cayenne: A sharp step up in heat that lingers in the throat.
Scoville Heat Units (SHU): ~50,000
#4 Habanero: This is where the sweetness drops off and the sharp, floral habanero burn takes over. Scoville Heat Units (SHU): ~350,000
#5 Carolina Reaper: The ultimate test. It delivers an intense, eye-watering burn that builds rapidly and can cause dizziness or extreme discomfort.
Scoville Heat Units (SHU): ~2,200,000

We carefully watched Jeremy's progression through the five jelly beans. Although we had milk at the ready, Jeremy did make it through all five without taking a sip. Milk is highly effective at cutting spiciness because it contains casein, a protein that binds to and washes away capsaicin (the oily chemical that causes the burn). The first few were no problem. Only the last one made him perspire a bit; but he also saw his way through the heat to comment on the flavor of each as well. Autumn also taste tested, but after the first one decided no more, that it was not fun! I will point out though, that the packets of other flavored jelly beans got devoured lickety-split. Later in the evening, Jeremy did comment that the roof of his mouth was a bit sore.

Owl 3D Puzzle

While on an outing browsing the antique stores in the Nile District of Fremont on February 14th I picked up this wooden 3D Puzzle. I brough ti becaseu I thugh it might spark Autumn's interest. She dove iinto it right away, very intently.

Star Wars Figures

In checking out of an Office Max store, of all places, I spotted this LEGO Star Wars figures kit on sale. LEGOS never go on sale! I bought it for Isaiah and he loved it, instantaneously delving into the assemblies.

We ordered in from Charlestons. Three of us ordered their pork chops, one of their specialities. They were so moist and good and two came to an order. We had enough for a second meal. I also had glazed carrots that were excellent. Somehow we accidentally ordered the croissants twice and got double the quantity. No problem, whatsoever. They were gone in no time, so soft, buttery, with a honey drizzle.

Often, non-pre-planned evenings chilling at home can be the best of times. What a joy it was after the hectic past two and a half days of traveling and attending multiple musical performances!

OKC 1 of 5: Arrival & Legally Blonde Jr. May 8-10

Frank and I visited Oklahoma City and Robin's family May 8th-14th. A driving factor for our particular timing was our 13 year old granddaughter's Autumn's appearance in the musical Legally Blonde, Jr., but we had other plans, also. Our two flights out were uneventful, but kept us on our toes learning Southwest Airline's new seating protocols. We actually had assigned seats. We paid a bit extra for each of them, but we wanted peace of mind that we could deplane soon enough to make our connection... which we did.

Friday, May 8th

The flight was fairly smooth with just the usual amount of turbulence in the Denver vicinity. The landing at OKC Will Rogers airport was routine and it was not raining. However, when we reached the luggage carousel, we were notified that there was a lightning alert and that airport personnel were not allowed to be out on the field to unload our luggage. We had to cool our heels an hour and a half waiting for the alert to finish and for our bags to come. Apparently this situation in becoming more normal for Oklahoma.

We had amusement while waiting. A roaming vacuuming robot seemed to home in on Frank and press forward for the attack. R2D2's "brother from another mother" did a last-minute turnaround and did not carry out on his threatened approach. Frank survived!

We took an UBER from the aitport to our hotel, the Hampton Inn & Suites Moore by Hilton, about 30 minutes southeast from the airport. Robin's home was about 12 minutes (less than 5 miles west) away from our hotel, but we would not see her and her family until the next morning. Friday was the opening night of Autumn's play and timing was such we could not go until the following day.

Our room on the fourth floor was pleasing and quite spacious. I was bemused that each room had a image as well as a number on the ID plate for the room. I guess this visual hint is to help the rooming clients find their room since all look alike from the outside. Our plaque showed license plates which was kind of neat because both Frank and Jeremy hang a collection of plates in their garage.

 

After checking in and dropping off our bags, we sought out a place for dinner. A Braum's store was within walking distance and we went there to grab a bite. I had a Strawberry Poppyseed Chicken Salad and it was one of the best salads I have had in a while. It had strawberries, blueberries, and pineapple chunks on a bed of spinach with moist chicken. Braums' is known for its ice cream and dairy products and is local to Oklahoma. I found this Wikipedia article about Braum's interesting. I learned about A1 and A2 milk. After we walked back to our hotel we found a freezer section and snack area near the front desk. We each got a container of Dibb's ice cream nuggets for the room. We enjoyed these tasty tidy nibbles so much, we treated ourselves nightly before bed each of our six nights at the hotel.

Saturday & Sunday, May 9-10

Jeremy had to work Saturday because there was a concert at The University of Oklahoma's Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The stadium currently has an official seating capacity of 80,126. Nicknamed the "Palace on the Prairie," it is one of the largest on-campus college football stadiums in the country. In his role as Assistant Fire Marshall of OU, Jeremy must be at all large events in the football stadium, such as sports events and concerts, for crowd control and safety. Saturday's concert featured featuring country music star Luke Combs. I am not familiar with this artist but his number one song is Beautiful Crazy. There were some tense moments that night because the concert was at risk of being cancelled due to lightning alerts. Fortunately the threat passed; Jeremy and crew did not need to deal with an angry crowd. Jeremy had to miss Autumn's Saturday performance but he was able to be at the opening and closing performances on Friday and Sunday.

Robin, Frank, Isaiah and I went to Autumn's matinee performance of Legally Blonde, Jr. She did great and it was so fun to see her so animated and happy. This was her first theatre performance; she'd tried out for ensemble, not wanting to be more ambitious initially. She wound up playing voice and dance contributions in the general ensemble as a Harvard fraternity guy and a DeltaNu sorority sister, in addition to an individual role as the bailiff in the court scene.

For this production Autumn took classes and studied with the Thelma Gaylord Academy in Oklahoma City. Per their website:

Lyric’s Thelma Gaylord Academy is the premiere musical theatre academy in the state of Oklahoma. Having served thousands of students since our founding in 2001, we have former students succeeding in all walks of life – from lawyers to doctors to educators, moms, dads, and yes – actors. Many of our alumni have gone on to careers in Hollywood, on television, and Broadway. However, our proudest accomplishment is knowing that each and every student who goes through our program exits with a strong sense of self, their place in the community, and their responsibility to make a world that is accepting of their differences.

Legally Blonde Jr. was performed at the Lyric's Plaza Theatre, a 281-seat venue, located in the Plaza District. It is about a 12.6 mile / 18 minute drive from Autumn's home. Rehearsals and classes put quite a few miles on the car during the preparation. I counted nine round trips from home to the theatre on the weekend we were there. Each performance — Friday evening, Saturday matinee and evening, and Sunday matinee — Autumn had to be there early so every performance entailed two round trips. On Sunday we had to take to cars, hence NINE round trips. I cannot even begin to count the trips for rehearsal and classes. I am sure that there had to have been some carpooling among fellow cast members, but still — this was true parental dedication at work. A small silver lining however, is that the gas prices in Oklahoma (~$3/gal) are about half of what they are currently in California ($6/gal). 

The theatre was intimate, well lit, and the sound was definitely good. We enjoyed the skill and talent, as well as the enthusiasm, of the young performers. We carefully watched for Autumn's appearance, first as a frat guy, then later several times in the ensemble as of one of the Delta Nu sorority sisters. Although not a speaking part, Autumn acted in an individual role as the bailiff in the court scene, holding the bible for oaths during the trial and escorting out a convicted prisoner. She had multiple costume changes and subsequently developed an aversion to buttons, silently cussing them. Her dad Jeremy quietly joked that he could tell she was in costume, because it was the only time he ever saw her in a skirt.

The singing during the show was awesome — bright, loud, enthusiastic, high tempo, and energetic besides also being marvelously on pitch! We delighted in it during the show but also around the house when at home and blaring from the speakers in the car to and from the theatre (and also during other trips about town). This is a sample of the song Omigod from Youtube. After the Saturday matinee that Robin, Isaiah, Frank and I attended, we had silk flowers for Autumn. Her mom and dad had presented her with real flowers the previous evening on opening night. Frank went again with Robin to the Saturday evening performance. At the Sunday matinee, Autumn had Robin, Jeremy, Isaiah, Frank and me in the audience cheering her on and clapping enthusiastically.  After the final performance, Autumn joined her newly made friends and the other cast members, across the street to celebrate with ice cream.

Autumn was given a pink T-shirt commemorating the show. The front has the show title and logo. The back has a list of all the performers and tech crew with their role(s). Autumn's name is sixth from the top with Bailiff, Ensemble listed after it.

After all was said and done sung, Legally Blonde Jr. was most definitely a worthwhile endeavor.  The parental input into the time driving to and from the classes, rehearsals, and performances was rewarded by the smiles, dancing, excitement, and joyful singing that abounded during and afterward. Frank and I were so glad we were able to be a small part of it.

  ♬ Omigod! ♬♬ Omigod you guys!

July Trip to OKC

Frank and I visited our daughter and her family in Oklahoma City July 16th through July 25th. This trip was very quilt intensive and had been planned to coincide with Robin's guild's biannual quilt show. This post has an overview of our stay and the highlights that were not overly quilt focused. I published other quilt related posts for those aspects of the trip in my DianeLoves2Quilt blog.

Wednesday July 16: Arrival
Our flight from San Jose CA via Phoenix arrived mid afternoon. Jeremy, Autumn, and Isaiah picked us up from the airport. Jeremy had taken a break from helping Robin tape out the floor areas for the vendor booths for her guild's quilt show. She was vendor chair. 

July 16th was also Isaiah's 10th birthday and so we celebrated with a cake, candles, and opening gifts shortly after getting to their house once Robin joined us.

Then I gave Robin the quilt I'd been working on. I had made it from the T-shirts from her childhood years. My post about Ski's Tees was published on July 17th, the day after I presented it to her.

Thursday July 17: Post Travel Day of Rest

Thursday Frank and I chilled and unpacked at home while Robin and Jeremy did quilt show prep. The vendors would be moving in their wares and setting up their booths at one end of the fairgrounds building. The quilts would be being hung for display on the remaining larger section of the building. One lady fell from a ladder while hanging a quilt, hurt her head (it was bleeding), and also injured her back and part of her hand. Jeremy is still certified as a paramedic from his first responder and fireman days. Another guild member was a retired ER head trauma nurse. Together they went to her aid until an ambulance could take her away. They later heard back that she had a cracked vertebrae, but no brain injury, and is recovering. Never a dull moment ...

Also, while the big roll up doors to the large commercial building were open, a bird flew in. Lots of failed efforts were made to shoo him out. No one wanted to risk bird poop on their quilts, fabrics, or other selling stock. Eventually the bird flew into the men's room and one of the vendors happened to be in there. He contacted security who gave him permission to open the window and let the bird escape. At last! Another non-dull moment ...

Friday July 18 and Saturday July 19: COQG Show +
Both days were heavily involved with quilt show visiting. Robin would go in earlier before opening to handle any potential vendor issues. Friday I attended with Robin and Autumn. In the afternoon Robin got a phone call from Jeremy that she was not supposed to relay to me. Frank had asked Jeremy to take him to an ER with abdominal pain. Not a critical intestinal blockage but strong discomfort never the less. Scans confirmed surgical intervention was not needed and with some medicinal intervention Frank was feeling better by evening. Yet another non-dull moment...

Saturday Jeremy took his mom and Isaiah to the show in the morning. Frank felt better enough to go to the show with me Saturday afternoon. Frank and I stayed till closing and even got to watch some of the take down maneuvers for the quilt displays and vendor booths. Robin and Jeremy were tied up with aiding and organizing a smooth vendor exit. Photos of both our days, with a selection of the quilts and a video of the take down, is available in my August 6 blog post titled OKC Quilt Show. This is the shirt Jeremy wore that got rave reviews. He was a VERY involved husband.

In the hubbub of our arrival I never gave Autumn her special socks. When I did, she wore a big smile, tried them on, and ran off to show them to one of her friends. For a near teenager, this was great praise and a thank-you. She liked being set apart for learning to play the saxophone.

Sunday July 20: Relaxing then Drive to Hennessey
Sunday morning we got up late and relaxed, Robin still busily working away at email business as follow-up from the show. Late afternoon Robin and I left for our three day quilt class in Hennessey, OK. The ride was a 72.5 mile drive north to our hotel The Sleep Inn and Suites.

The drive was across flat, peaceful, lands with views of windmills, cattle, and trains.

The Sleep Inn and Suites was only a few blocks away from where we would be taking our class. We checked out the class venue and were able to drop off our sewing machines and tools and fabric. Folks were still in there sewing late at night. They shared with us an access code to be able to get in to the building at the rear of Prairie Quilts any time of night should the sewing bug bite win out over sleep. We set up our machines and workspace and then headed to the hotel. We'd brought enough food to snack on and had eaten just a couple of hours ago so we were good to settle in for the night. 

Monday July 21 through Wednesday July 23: In Class
Breakfast was provided the next morning so let the quilting begin! After our first day in class with Jacqueline de Jonge at Prairie Quilts, we learned that no restaurants are open in Hennessey on Mondays. We were grateful for the fantastic lunch the retreat services had served. That evening we drove to the "adjacent" town of Kingfisher, 18 miles due south on Route 81, the only road to there, and ate at a place called Stack Grill. Robin's meal was OK, but my fried chicken meal was so dry I told them it was inedible. They comped me for half of it and asked if there was anything else they could do. I said, "Yes. Make the cook try to choke it down." I had assumed that out in the middle of the country, fried chicken would have been a good choice, like ordering seafood at a restaurant with a view of the ocean. My mistake. However, the evening was not lost. After dinner, we did go back to the retreat center, since it was open 24 hours, and did some more sewing.

Tuesday Rooster's
After our second day of class on Tuesday, we asked for eating suggestions. Folks told us that there was a gas station that made excellent burgers, "the best they'd ever tasted".  As a "bonus" there was a fly swatter at every table. We found it a few blocks away and went inside. We then swiftly came back outside and searched for someplace else to eat. 

Instead, Robin drove 2.6 miles south but still in Hennessey to a restaurant, Rooster's, that we had passed the previous night but it had been closed. It looked pretty shabby from the outside but we were told the food was good and not to let the appearance dissuade us.

Once inside we agreed it was clean plus the decor and table tops were kinda cute. There was a pretty expansive salad bar where we were invited to help ourselves while waiting for our entrées. 

The food was good and plentiful. For one of my sides I ordered corn nuggets, wondering what they were. What they were, was DELICIOUS! They looked like tater tots but they were breaded corn. By goggling corn nuggets I learned that corn nuggets are bite-sized fritters, made from a simple batter filled with sweet corn kernels. They fry up crispy and golden on the outside, with a tender, soft interior. These nuggets likely originated in the South, inspired by dishes like hush puppies and other types of fritters. They must be a middle of the country thing because I looked for them at a store once I returned to California and they were not available in my locale.

On our way out, Robin and I posed for pix of "chicks among the chicks". Rooster's was a fun place and a happy, lucky find.

On the way to Rooster's I had spotted metal sculptures of cattle in a field near the road. After our meal we looked for them on the way back and could not see them. They were in a pasture that was a bit depressed below road level. Robin made a U-turn and humored me by backtracking in the opposite direction so I could take some photos. 

Upon research I learned that this prominent cattle sculpture in Hennessey, Oklahoma is located in Bull Foot Park. Bull Foot Station in Hennessey, once a re-supply stop on the Chisholm Trail, is now a park with a cattle drive sculpture garden. This park holds historical significance as a former supply and watering point for drovers on the Chisholm Trail. The sculpture itself is a representation of the historical cattle drive that once passed through the area. These metal sculptures were quasi-two dimensional and not as powerful and extensive as the three dimensional bronze sculptures in Oklahoma City depicting the land rush. These cattle however, were worth taking note for their historical significance and for the just plain whimsy they provide seeing them scattered across the field. 

For comparison here is a photo of part of the Oklahoma Centennial Land Run Monument. This sculpture was erected in 2019 and features either 45 or 47 bronze statues, each one being "one-and-a-half times life-size". The work depicts "horsemen and wagons racing over the Oklahoma landscape", with a total area slightly "larger than a football field".

Wednesday Final Day of Class and Drive Home
Robin and I told our husbands that three days of quilting in a row was a lot and that we would probably head home early on the final day, if we stayed at all. We stayed. We stayed for the entire three day class.  The following photo shows our progress and the post in my DianeLves2Quilt blog dated 8/7/25 tells more details.

Thursday July 24:  Games and Prep to Leave
Both Robin and Jeremy had to work so Frank and I were at their home with the kids. Autumn was ensconced in her room most of the time as befits someone within months of turning 13. Isaiah had video games to keep him engaged. Frank and I needed to pack. We did take breaks though and played Quirkle with Isaiah; he was within one Quirkle of winning per the score sheet. Later when Robin was home we did a jigsaw puzzle.

Friday Jul 25: Posed Photos and Travel
Robin came home from work on her lunch time to take Frank and me to the airport. We posed for commemorative photos on the front porch: Frank and me with Robin and then Frank and me with Autumn and Isaiah.

Then we present the hug series. Jeremy was at work and so missed out on the love fest but we'd said our goodbyes to him earlier in the morning.

Our flight home was to be direct with only one stop in Phoenix. That changed though and so we had to get off and switch planes. The flight number stayed the same but the physical plane was different and left from a nearby gate. We thought this to be a somewhat weird turn of events, but not an unexpected glitch in travel plans. Apparently there was something wrong with the plane we'd been on initially. Ignorance is bliss. We flew back to San Jose relatively on time and took an Uber home from the airport.

Trip Aftermath
We rested up on Saturday, and on Sunday we were to go bowling with Alex. There was one more lingering memento from the trip. Vintage Crafts & Gifts from Typer TX was one of the vendors from the quilt show. Robin bought a stuffed rabbit for Alex. It was a big hit. The bunny even went bowling with us.