51st Anniversary

Sunday, September 27th, was Frank's and my 51st wedding anniversary. The Saturday night before we remarked how we had absolutely no plans and that was perfectly OK. Unbeknownst to me he got early up before me Sunday morning and snuck out to the store. He pointed out how difficult it is to get a card for 51 years so he did the best he could by modifying a card.

I came down the stairs looking for him and intercepted him coming in from the garage. He told me to go sit in the living room because he was not finished "setting up". Here is what he set up. Frank says when we were first dating he got me red roses since they mean love. He rationalized that since both he and are are a bit faded now, he got me pink roses instead because they are a paler version of red. In the pink striped box are my favorite donuts, French crullers. Frank had the bakery section of the grocery store write on the cake. Our wedding album is at the bottom of the photo. In the center of the table is our scrapbook that he made during our dating years. Why the bananas? In my aging years they have become critical for my health and Frank wanted to make sure I had enough for my daily needs and at the correct stage of ripeness. Romance also has a practical side to it.

The scrapbook Frank made for us is just above the wedding album. It is open to my 21st birthday. Note that the rose I am holding there is red. The cover of the scrapbook is silkscreened from a set of computer punch cards. Now that really dates the relationship.

We normally take our son Alex bowling on Sundays but the alley had a tournament this week and we would not have been able to go until late afternoon. Instead, I went online and located a cell phone directed scavenger hunt in our hometown of Livermore. Afterwards, I recreated the route we took, counterclockwise starting at the red dot where the car was parked, using MapMyWalk.com. It was generated from memory so there may be a few inaccuracies. The total distance as calculated by the app was 1.28 miles.

The hunt took us to historic buildings in Livermore then asked challenge questions about what we had seen on the plaques. The first site was the building near the flag pole that used to house the Independent newspaper. Called the Bank of Italy, Unfortunately my selfie skills showed little of the building but the phot does prove that Frank, Alex and I were there.

Our next stop was the Muse and Mane Hair Salon. The significance of that business is the building that houses it, the Bernal Building. The plaque  had interesting facts about early history, such as it was built with bricks salvaged from the Livermore Brewery.

Our third stop was Carnegie Park, the green area on the route map. Central to the park is the Carnegie building that once was Livermore's first library and has a gazebo for outdoor concerts. In the surrounding paved area I located a Livermore-made brick. The hunt instruction told us to make sure we stretch at this point. Alex and Frank complied. I did too but there is no picture to document that. It is hard to simultaneously selfie and stretch.

 Next stop on the hunt was the Veteran's Memorial on Fifth and L Streets. I photographed Frank posed at the corner near the flagpole. Frank photographed Alex and me executing an honorary salute as instructed by the hunt. 

The next stop on the hunt was to locate murals in Downtown Livermore. The area was very busy as this particular Sunday was Nostalgia Day for Livermore and the streets for a about a three-block by four-block area had classic cars parked all along them. I took a photo for our son Dan of a particularly striking Corvette since he likes those. One definite advantage of Nostalgia Day is that the streets were closed off to traffic, leaving pedestrians free rein to roam wherever, not having to pay attention to traffic lights or walk signs, or even having the freedom to diagonal across streets safely as they pleased.

We decide at this point we'd had enough of the hunt and wanted to take a break. We all had sundaes at Loard's Ice Cream. Afterward we walked back to the car and drove Alex back home to San Ramon.

Once home we chilled for a couple hours and turned on recorded football. That cake was calling to us and we rationalized it had been about four hours since the ice cream, so not too soon to commemorate our 51st anniversary by cutting the cake.

Frank had bought the cake because he liked all the colors on top. He did not know what flavor it was, only that it was pretty. I read the label describing the cake as Chocolate Enrobed Mousse Cake, which I had never heard of. I googgled it and AI informed me that

A chocolate enrobed mousse cake is a rich dessert featuring light chocolate mousse layered with sponge cake and completely coated in a smooth chocolate glaze, ganache, or icing.

We do not know what it was, but it was certainly GOOD — no glaze, no ganache, no chocolate icing, no chocolate at all. It was full of surprises, just like 51 years of marriage.

Ponder: Spectacular Things

Spectacular Things ©2025 by Beck Dorey-Stein is one of the Reese Witherspoon selections and I usually enjoy her picks but not this one. This novel was drawn out. I did plod on and read the entire book only because the first chapter was captivating and posed a very interesting premise. 

Two sisters, Mia was always a giver, and the other sister, Cricket, was always an acceptor have. Note, I called Cricket an acceptor not a taker.  Both sisters care deeply for each other and sustain a very close relationship. The opening conflict is that Mia needs a kidney and Cricket is a good match. Is Cricket capable of assuming the role of giver? The scene then flashes back to their childhood years and continues chronologically. The reader needs to wait until the final pages of the book to learn the resolution.

PROS:

• The characters are well developed but this does not mean I like them.
• The characters' actions are decided for good and not out of revenge or evilness or selfishness. I found some of the decisions unwise but this lent interest to the plot.
• A great deal of the setting was in Maine so the weather challenges added depth to the story. 
• There is a shocking occurrence about a third of the way into the book.

CONS:

• Soccer is the all time, all day, all consuming focus. My eyes glazed over with all the emphasis on training and physical discipline to be the best.
• Not all relationships in the novel are heterosexual. I am not a homophobe, but this type of interaction is beyond my ability to empathize. Introduced late in the novel, it does nothing to advance the plot.
• The overall pace was slow and soccer seemed to assume the role of a Johnny-one-note.

I vacillated between my rating of two or three stars. Two stars correspond to Ok, not great; some redeeming features; I finished it. Three stars corresponds to Better than average; not a waste of time. Well, I did finish it but it was a waste of time. This book seemed atypical of Reese's selections.

★★☆☆☆ Ok, not great; some redeeming features; I finished it

Beauty and the Beast Musical

Saturday, Sept 12th, Frank and I took Alex to see the musical Beauty and the Beast playing at the Center for Performing Arts in San Jose.

Frank and I are season ticket holders. This year we moved our seats from Orchestra Right (odd numbers) to Orchestra Left (even numbers). We are now a few rows closer to the stage (Row 8 instead of Row 12) and nearer the end. The numbering system has seats 1 and 2 in each row being on the midline of the theatre. We have now have end seats 46 and 44; seat 42 was added especially for Alex for this particular show. Our previous season's seats Row 12 seats were 45 and 47. Our new aisle seats are great for restroom access and for making an early beeline to the concession stands at intermission. A drawback is that we have to get up — or everybody has to clamber over us — on their way to their more centered seats. Our angle of view to the stage is about the same as last season. 

The stage display before the show periodically had rose petals fluttering about. Hmmm ... is this some romantic reference like that TV show The Bachelor? Alex, as usual, intently peruses his program prior to the start of the show. 

Alex loved the appearance of Belle in her regal, flashy, classic yellow gown. He did loudly announce "Beast!" when he appeared in the light, but did not note the beast's presence in the dark shadows.

I was surprised to note the lack of overlap between songs from the 1991 animated Disney movie and the 1994 musical. (Wow! Has it been that long ago?) Alex was very much animated and engaged for songs he recognized. 

We have seen this musical once before, years ago. If my memory serves me correctly, I remembered the huge scene of plates and cutlery dancing to the song Be Our Guest to be much more flamboyant than this performance. People then were dressed as huge plates while dancing around in huge numbers. This show, each dancer held up a super-sized Frisbee type disk — not at all as awe-inspiring— and there were fewer dancers. The men carried lamppost type super big forks and spoon which they danced around in Singin' in the Rain fashion, instead of being costumed as cutlery. I had been looking forward to revisiting that scene from my memory and was a bit bummed when it had been dumbed down. Perhaps it was budget cuts or just the difficulty of maintenances on such elaborate costumes that forced the downgrade. 

On a more positive note though, the costume of Lumière was exciting, as he would periodically shoot flames from his arms — way higher than the following photo captures. At some points I think they would surge about two feet up into the air. I did wonder if the actress who played Mrs. Potts had a sore arm from keeping it uplifted the entire show. She certainly portrayed a teapot skillfully. The little boy who played her son Chip was adorable and his singing voice for a child his size and age impressed me.

Gaston was so well cast you just wanted to throttle him for his arrogant posture and utterances. I loved that Belle personified the Belle of the movie and did not play the part as some modernized interpretation. The transformation scene from Beast to Man near the end was so well done that Frank and I were scratching our heads on how they'd levitated the actor while morphing his form. Very well done.

As we exited the theatre, looking back and admiring the projected image on the stage, were we glad we had made the effort to assure that Alex saw this musical. The parts he recognized and enjoyed, he really got into. We are pleased with our seat upgrades and glad we renewed our season tickets for Frank and me.

Castle Rock with Royal Gorge Railroad

For an outing on Sunday August 16th when visiting Dan we took two cars and traveled southward about 90 miles to ride the Royal Gorge Railroad in Canyon City, beyond Colorado Springs. Carrie drove one car with Lillian, William, and Irene. Dan drove his truck with Frank, Vivian, and me. Vivian had her choice to ride with the old folks or with her siblings. She chose to come with her dad's vehicle and grandparents because "it would be quieter so she could read". The time in the car was about 1½ hours. 

Once at our destination, Frank and Dan checked in early at the train station to pick up our tickets. They made arrangements that when we returned closer to departure time, we would have assistive transportation down to the train boarding site. I waited near a black caboose at the far end of the parking lot while they completed the transactions. The caboose was a cafe/restaurant with the cute title Happy Endings and the subliminal tongue-in-cheek subtitle of "come again".

Carrie and three of the kids went on to secure our seating at a different nearby restaurant. All eight of us had enough time to lunch at a Whitewater Rooftop Social. This eating place was close. To return for the train ride we just had to cross the tracks and head down a bit, passing that black Happy Endings Caboose on a corner along the way. 

Per the restaurant's website and brochure, Whitewater Rooftop Social was "Built from the Ground Up":

We wanted a place that feels like Canon City: easygoing, outdoors-forward, and a little elevated. So we built a modern rooftop where you can toast the view, eat a great sandwich, and celebrate wins big and small. In January 2021, a semi-truck accident destroyed the Royal Gorge Rafting and Zipline Tours office at Fourth Street and U.S. 50. The driver of the semi-truck was cited for careless driving after police determined they were not paying attention to the road. Though the building sustained catastrophic damage, all employees working inside miraculously escaped entirely unscathed, with the truck stopping just a few feet away from a worker. Rather than repair the damage, we saw an opportunity to create something new. Construction on our brand new 4,000 square-foot building began in September 2022, and Whitewater Rooftop Social opened its doors in 2024.

Dan had arranged for us to have limousine service from the ticket station to our specific car to board the train. I was impressed with the length of the train. That would have been a long haul on foot over pebbly turf for Frank with his rollator and me. The "limo" was an extra length golf cart, so happily all eight of us could ride—a neat, extra treat for the kiddos. The limo passed the long length of train cars en route.

Reaching the open air car, next to the car for our seating, we could look back along the length of cars and see how far we'd come.

Our tickets on the train were rated Deluxe Class and the wood paneled cars were indeed luxurious. The wood on the walls and ceiling was highly polished and spoke of great craftsmanship. Our car's position among the train cars was great. Since our assigned seats were in a car that was adjacent to the open air car, we could go back and forth quite easily. We had chairs at two tables, so there was a place to put our food, drinks, and to browse our information brochures. The kids had a resting place for books they were reading or for the card games they were playing.

Route Details

• Starting Point: Departs from and returns to the historic Cañon City Santa Fe Depot at 401 Water Street in Cañon City, CO. (lower right corner of image)
• Path: Travels west alongside the rushing Arkansas River directly through the narrow gorge, with granite cliffs towering over 1,000 feet above the tracks. 
• Key Landmarks: Crosses the famous Hanging Bridge (built in 1879) suspended over the river and passes through local tunnels and historic railroad sites. 
• Mid Point : Reverses direction at Parkdale, an unincorporated community resting at an elevation of 5,732 feet (upper left image of image)
• Duration: The 24 mile round-trip excursion takes approximately 2 hours. 

Looking out the windows we noticed the water running very close to the tracks. We even saw some rafters flow by along the Arkansas River. I wondered why it is the Arkansa River in Colorado. My geography ignorance was showing. I have since learned that the Arkansas River is a major 1,469-mile-long tributary of the Mississippi River that flows east and southeast through Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. It is the sixth-longest river in the United States.

On a long train going around a bend it is fun to take pictures of the later cars on the train. Dan actually walked the entire length of the train with some of the kids. There was a dome car, but being outdoors gives the best gorge experience.

At the very bottom of the gorge, slightly above the water surface, is wedged the Hanging Bridge at a point where the gorge narrows to 30 feet.This unique railroad bridge was built in 1879 where the canyon was too narrow for standard tracks. An engineer suspended an iron bridge directly from the smooth rock walls above the water. It carries the tracks for the Royal Gorge Route Railroad. The next two images show this span between the very close vertical walls of the gorge. The tracks run orthogonal to the span, not parallel along it, as is typical.

When you look up, directly over the Hanging Bridge, located high above the canyon stretching across, is the Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge about 956 feet above the Arkansas River. The famous pedestrian and tourist suspension bridge was built in 1929, featuring a wooden plank deck. It was once the highest bridge in the world. My guess is that all those black trusses with lighting on them are for twilight rides on the train. Those night-time journeys must also be very impressive.

The sights outside the train were awesome but being indoors in that pleasant atmosphere was also enjoyable. Vivian got pretty engaged in her book but not without taking periodic breaks to gaze out at the scenery passing by the windows. Lillian and William, interspersed with roaming among, in between, and outside the cars, would play rousing rounds of the card game of Thirty-One.

A favorite among all, not just the kids, were the desserts made as part of exquisitely prepared cuisine. Chocolate cake was the dominant choice. Gooey as it was, Frank ate his Cinnamon Roll outdoors in the open air car, so reluctant was he to miss any of the striking landscape.

At the completion of our round trip, we made quick stop in the gift shop to both look around and use the facilities before the drive home. I could not resist taking a few photos of the tiles in the bathroom. They read from left to right:

• Eight-Wheeled American Locomotive
• Double-Truck Narrow Gauge Tank Locomotive
• Double-End Tank Locomotive

All I bought was a tote bag and an embroidered patch as mementoes. 

Once home we just enjoyed domestic activities. I had ordered a train for the kids that chugs along and places dominoes in a row, setting up a line for chain reactions in a domino cascades. They had a blast. Even Irene got into loading it.

The kids chilled and had some recharge time (pun intended) on their electronic devices. Lillian and William played some co-op games together on their iPads. 

 

I asked for a bit of musical concerts and they obliged. I knew the performances had to be brief. It had been a full day and the next day was a school day. Vivian played the clarinet for us. She was picked for a solo at one of her elementary schools concerts. She is in middle school now.

Lillian played the violin and the guitar to our delight. She was the opening number at one of her teacher's student concerts, playing the national anthem on her guitar.

I asked Lillian (10) and William (8) to show me their rooms. I had seen Irene's (5) and Vivian's (12) in the earlier part of the visit but have no pictures. Lillian is horse crazy and it showed in her decor and dresser display. The mirror reflecting her smiling face once belong to my daughter Robin (Dan's sister, Lillian's aunt) in her young girl horse-focused childhood. Lillian was thrilled to have it mailed out to her from Oklahoma. It is heart-warming to see how such an inanimate object can still delight a little girl decades later.

There is a music corner in Lillian's room where she practices. It sure appears that brother William is an eager audience. We were given a demo before moving on to William's room.

William is Minecraft crazy. Notice the wall decor and the shirt he is wearing.  Once prompted he was willing to show off his trophies. I have very few pictures of William to show in this blog. He is always moving and either I am not quick enough with the camera, or else the photo is blurred. He does not play an instrument yet but he got a drum set with earphones for Christmas. In the third photo I am playing and dancing to the beat which is inaudible to the rest of the room. I guess you could say I am literally dancing to the beat of a different drummer.

 

Lillian and William were already PJ'd up for bed when we took our traditional goodbye photo commemorating the visit. Frank and I were flying back to California on Monday. We made sure we got up early enough distribute hugs and say goodbye to the kids before they left for school.

Monday morning, I misread, or rather misremembered, our flight's departure time. To my horror, we had one hour less for the trip to the airport than I had originally had budgeted. To compound the problem, our new-to -the-area Uber driver wanted to drop us at the wrong terminal. I insisted he follow the signs and not his "map". After a second airport go-around, we did get dropped at the Southwest terminal. The Uber driver got no tip from us and I avoided reviewing him rather than giving him a bad score. Frank and I flung our luggage at the curbside skycap, along with a generous tip. The manager of the wheel chair service himself, briskly whisked both Frank and me to our gate just as the pre-boarding was beginning. We made our flight by the skin of our teeth. 

This was a fantastic visit. Our two excursions to the Harry Potter  Exhibit and the Royal Gorge Railroad were both well suited to a mixed age crowd and created many many awesome memories for us. The downtime at home with the grandkids was great too, helping Frank and me, even at a California to Colorado distance, learn a bit more about their personalities, talents, and likes.

I think this photo captures one of the many high peaks and happy memories for me. Frank is in his glory, enjoying the weather, the breeze, the gentle sun, the towering canyon walls, the babbling water, and the motions and sounds of a ride on the rails, while indulging in his most favorite infatuation... trains. Note the shirt he is wearing.