Flashback Friday 6.25

The challenge was to do a layout of where you grew up, where you thought you were going to live and where you live now. So....as you know I can get a tad windy on stuff like this. Snort. Not that I can't wax elegant most times. Bwahahaha!!! So the vision isn't what I planned (most aren't actually) and I'm not sure what I think of this. However its out there and DONE. yeah!!! 8.5x11 hybrid layout. Few ingredients - Karen Foster notebook paper, creative cafe, qk hearts & holiday alpha!

journaling: We pulled out the driveway of our beautiful house in PA when I was 15 years old. Moving to FL with what we could take in a VW hatchback. There were 4 of us. My parents and brother. 6 weeks before my sophomore year ended. And everything else was left behind. SIGH!

I had always thought I’d live in PA. For some reason I figured I marry a farmer and live on a farm. WHY when I hated the animal smells I have no idea why I had that in mind, but there it was. And then THE MOVE.

I was sooooooo homesick. Couldn’t take to anyone on the phone without crying. Wrote letters everyday to my gram and best friend (who still is a BFF) Elaine, who’s parents were wonderful letting me call collect when I ran out of money for a pay phone. OH yeah. Those were the days lol!!!!

So I completed my last 6 weeks of school and we were just hanging out in a temporary abode because housing hadn’t really been sorted out. My dad went down a head of time had a job and he had been there for months looking things over. And here we were. I was miserable but I had no idea how miserable my brother was. Until he ran away - back home. To my grandparents house and sadly he didn’t have the best relationship w/them because well he was a boy. He hitched his way back and omg! the ruckus he caused. So it was decided that he would stay up there during the summer and my grandparents bought me a plane ticket to I could come up to. First Class. My first plane ride. BY MYSELF. Until coincidently I ran into one of the gang coming home from leave in the airport that would be on the same plane. A God moment no doubt.

So we turned that corner and a couple of years went by and we graduated. And I always thought I’d move back home then. My grandparents wanted me to live w/them. So not a good move. Really. Don’t get me wrong they were my beloved, but I would be such a brat because they spoiled me rotten. So I made excuses, visit and cry when I had to leave and come back to FL. I got a job, then I got a career job, made friends, had a boyfriend or two and then more years went by. The same pattern. I’d go home for vacation and return - making excuses to stay in FL. Every now and then family would come to FL after we had Disney World by then. And then I stopped making excuses and decided that FL was home and the people living up north - well what were they thinking. All that COLD weather and SNOW.

I don’t visit as often as I used to. I do try to get to the Pennsy side when I go to NJ where Tom’s family lives but I get so involved with them that time just goes on by and we’re coming back home. Yeah home. Where my heart is.......who would’ve thunk. 6.23.10

Let me just say my DH totally rocks......

I know you've been waiting for this breathlessly......THE CHALLENGE! I threw this album in my suitcase with a glue stick, a pen. YESS!!! And for those of you that know me, KNOW that I throw everything but the kitchen sink on lo's. WELL. I had to use what I could come across to tell the story AND of course lots of journaling. I believe this will become one of my favorites.
And then we had lunch at Hodad's. What a yummy burger OMG! And its like half the cow. If you follow diner's drive ins and dives, this was a featured show and let me tell you GUY got this one right....
The ambience is funky and fun and so is the waitstaff. We had a very good time. Yeah there is some hang time in line but that's part of the experience.
Then my wonderfully awesome DH bought me a new lens for my camera. A Tamron 18-270 zoom with VC. F/3.5-6.3. Can we say I'm in love??? Yup w/both LOL!!! (So I have my old Tamron 28-300 for sale if you'd like to buy it). ANYWAY we went to Port Loma to shoot the vista and lighthouses. Yup. TWO. Got these up close and personal this time. Last time I was here, I snapped these from the whaling tour I took which of course boasted no whales, but I have a rain check. bwahahahaha!!!! Anyway the lens rocks and the photos came out awesome.

The view overlooks the naval base and the boys were busy doing flyovers and had battleships guarding the harbor. It's so very cool and thank you guys for keeping us safe. OOO OOO and Miramar is close by so you get to see the jets doin' their thing. Of course the airshow (and I LOVE those) is in October. Maybe I'll make it back for that.

moving right along.....

This is sortof backwards but i don't wanna mess with the hotel internet. LOL!! I'm so spoiled. This is the view rolling down the coastline. And what a road that is. IT twists and turns more than the crookedess road in SF. Really. AND the dropoffs are dizzying at best. Really 300 ft DOWN without a guardrail or net. DH thought it was awesome. I couldn't wait to get off the road.The rockiness of it is just stunning and the color of the water was amazing. It was not a sunny day and you could just see the fog rolling in, actually at one point it was just hovering out by the horizon.....
And without further ado, this is the little house just below the Golden Gate bridge. It was just so picturesque. Have about a million pix. lol!!! And NOW..
the Bridge....big, bold, beautiful and taken from the viewpoint as parked by the double decker bus we rode to and fro (you know I'm not into heights right?) and had the most amazingly politically incorrect tour guide. I'm thinking his English accent let him get away with a lot. lmao.......
At the writing of this we are in San Diego one of my favorite cities. I'll try to keep up but there are soooooooooo many pix.

okay there are a few things that are a total given

in San Francisco Coit tower is one of those landmarks that will be in almost every photo you shoot. Guaranteed. Its up on the hill and was built by a wealthy patron who really dug the firefighters back in the day.And wine, oh my my, always available - haven't seen a blue law yet. lol!!! And the vineyards just rock the pinot grigio and chardonnay. YUM!

And then the sourdough bread. It's delicious and its everywhere, served wherever you go. AND it doesn't need to be hot. Yes yes I know - not good for the ole diet, but in San Fransisco you just have to man up and eat because its like no other anywhere else.The cable cars, trollies or electric buses will always be in your pictures somewhere. Its a given.
Alcatraz another landmark that will always appear in your photos because well you can never have enough photos of "The Rock." And seriously depending on the weather is what type of photo you get.
I have a picture somewhere of all the yummy clams crabs and mussels they sell on the waterfront but alas I can't find it. And yes, you just need to man up again and scarf these tasty morsels down.

AND the bonus round......you'll have a good hair day until you step out of what ever structure or abode you are in. Then the wind comes from ALL directions simultaneously and blows it to smithereens. Seriously Period.

Fisherman's Wharf.....

and cable cars!!! Fisherman's wharf is a bustling, grungy place to hang. The aromas of cooking dungeness crab (and other shells) right on the sidewalk just invite you in for a bite. It looks like a normal wharf. Had it been pristine the fun would've been gone, because really, that ain't a wharf. We decided the cable cars would be fun, and so did everyone else is SF. So we had a bit of a wait, which was cool. Took pix of the tall ship and the Golden Gate bridge. There was a lot of mist, fog, whatever so those pix are not only iffy but the internet here only allows one upload at a time and you have to do about five times before it takes. Persistence. Patience. GRRRRR!! I want it done NOW. bwahahaha!!!!

They grow them big in CA.....

whether it be mountains, trees or waterfalls, they are BIG in California. Once our flight landed we hit the ground running. Well as fast as we could move, intending to get something seen, or done or visited before the jetlag set in. So Yosemite National Park was on our list. The trees there are totally magnificent and stately. Redwoods, that even laying on my back (my to my DH's chagrin and I tried to time it where I wouldn't be seen LOL) you couldn't get them all in - at least w/a 28 lens. Then of course we saw El Capitan. Why someone would want to climb a sheer face wall mountain and dangle by their fingertips is beyond me. Totally ruins a really good manicure. Really. The falls were totally outrageous. Gorgeous waterfalls coming down these sheer cliffs showered up a ton of froth and even a rainbow or two with really really cold water.

You could ride, hike or take a tour. We walked and rode. It was totally awesome.

The adventure begins..........

We began our day getting READY. And by ready - I had a couple of errands to run and Tom did mundane things like cut the grass. Yawn. We left about 3 maybe had a few false starts. LOL! Much to the dismay of DH who really likes the schedule. And his wife who could really care less. Really. So we are now at TIA. We ate at CJ's the View. Not to be confused "with the view" because really who cares what they think. Seriously. It was a revolving restaurant on floor 7 of the Marriott.

It takes 1 hr 22 min to get from point A to well point A. Its a bit disorienting and you really need to keep your eye on the action. Otherwise well you may not be digesting your food. Really. So we began our journey watching matchbox dump trucks, back hoes and cars with lights travel importantly up and down the roads building an airplane bridge so the employees can get to work on time. Meanwhile, keeping an eye on the sky watching the planes land and take off. AS if that's never been done before. You can't help it. Really. You're all like oooooo a plane is landing, and the earth stops its rotation until said plane is on the runway. Same with taking off. A true mystery. We then progressed to the PARKING GARAGE. Yessss! We watched a lone traveler wander aimlessly all over the garage while yapping on the phone and dragging his luggage behind him. Hard to contain the excitement of that. And then, THEN, we came eyeball to eyeball (almost) with the tower. The hub that has its fingers on the pulse of all comings and goings. Literally. And it was totally cool.

However, I digress. The food. When we decided on CJ's we kinda figured overpriced airport food and maybe some atmosphere. Well we were certainly surprised. The food ROCKED. And was cooked to perfection. So what more can you ask for with all the rockin action of a rotating restaurant with awesome food? A flower. They placed a beautiful orchid - like flower w/an attitude on my plate. And they said I could eat it. So I did. I ate my first flower. And it was crunchy and tasty. What a way to start an adventure. So stay tuned for more adventures.

Same bat channel.

Maybe same bat time. bwahahahaha!

Nothing says vacation like a dip.......

like a dip in Grandpop's sparkling cool wet pool. With Grandpop of course. What O didn't realize was he was actually floating there all on his own. Grandpop was just standing by. Which is very cool. And don't the little man just look so confident. Both had a great time just hanging out and bobbing up and down. One of my favorite things to do. Besides taking pix and recording it all. bwahahaha!!!

Sunset at the Venice Jetty

I'm feeling MUCH better now. Thanks. I know I've posted the jetty before but even though it remains the same, you really don't ever get the same photo because well....things change. GASP! I know. We took Owen and his parents LOL! to the jetty their last night here and caught this awesome sunset. Not only that...a sailboat sailed right into my photo AND I didn't pay them to do it. How cool is that.

As you can see LOTS of people come out to the jetty. OOOOOO and my favorite SIL let me use his camera - which is the macdaddy (to me b/c my lil o bitty rebel kicks my butt) of canon's to take their picture. Swoon. This is my favorite one and honestly - they really never take a bad photo - which annoys me to no end. Really, no one should ever be that photogenic except the adorable grandkidlet. bwahahahaha!!!!