St. Louis

I was in St. Louis for the past 5 days. I had a wonderful time, mostly because Purina paid for everything and really took care of us. I was very sad that Megan was not able to go with me, as she would have had a great time. Other then attending meetings and a few guest lectures we were able to go and explore a little. The Arch was of course at the top of the list. I also went to the zoo, which was just down the street from the Hotel (a free zoo!). I took the picture of the snake at the Herpeterium at the zoo.

Dad's 81st Birthday

Dad turned 81 years old today. Larry and Susan Marino dropped in from across the street, Marshall Jackman dropped in from Burlington, Iowa and Shing dropped in from the aerobics class. . .we had a Mexican food feast, with Dad's favorites of enchiladas, tacos and chili beans. 

Optical Illusion

So I haven't posted anything new on the Blog for a little while so I thought I would entertain you all with this litter gem that I found online. I am not sure exactly how it works, though I am sure I have learn the reason why at some point in my life. You stare at a picture for about 30 seconds then move your mouse over it and you will see the picture in color, despite the picture actually being black and white. Give it a try here!

How I Spent My Summer Vacation!

This is a picture of Jeannie doing her watch on the lookout aboard the cutter Boutwell. It looks to be a might chilly and windy there! Her cutter docked in Alameda on Sunday, June 11 and we were there to greet it. Jeannie took us on a tour of the cutter and we were able to have lunch on board too. Natalie joined us and enjoyed the experience. The crew thought it was cool to see Allison and even stood at attention when they saw her, thinking it was Jeannie! On June 16, Jeannie leaves for 6 weeks aboard Eagle, the 300 ft. sailing ship along the East Coast. Fair winds and seas, Jeannie!
 

Trip to D.C., Annapolis, and Greenbelt, MD

Alana and I went to Washington D.C., Annapolis and Greenbelt, Maryland for the National League of Cities Board Meeting and the Small Cities Council. We toured the oldest airport in the world at Greenbelt, where the Wright Brothers flew their airplane in 1908 (to get the U.S. military to order a contract from them). We also toured Greenbelt, which was the first planned community in the U.S., under FDR (Small Cities people on the steps of the museum). We also went down to Chesapeake Bay, had more crabs for dinner than I have ever eaten, and toured the old capital building in Annapolis. It was great for us to be with all of the Small Cities people again.

 

Birthday Bash and Fashion Show

Last weekend, we were able to get together at Grammy and Grampie's house to celebrate Jeannie and Allison's birthday (minus Allison because she was at SLO studying for finals). It was great fun to see everyone and to surprise Jeannie and Erin - they didn't know I was coming! Grammy made Jeannie's favorite dinner - TACOS! Erin, Alana, and Jeannie found some dresses that Grammy had worn to college friends' weddings a "few years ago". The girls enjoyed playing "dress up" with the gowns and the adults loved seeing the beautiful styles on them. Mom, you must have turned quite a few heads when you wore those gowns at the weddings. The weekend was fun - just wish we could have had the entire family together!
 

Weekend Getaway - $24,250

Thought this would be a pretty cool trip, and then I realized that it is just a little bit outside my price range. Anyway, check out this website for a pretty hardcore vacation. Seven course meals, rental cars in the form a Ferrari and Bentley, etc...

Click here to check it out.

It could be a sweet honeymoon huh?

G'Day Mate

Brad, Shirley and I just got back from Australia about 7 a.m. this morning. The speech in Melbourne went well but I am glad that it is over. These are some of the pictures that we took. ..saw the penguin migration to their nests one night near Melbourne, walked around the Sydney harbor (cleanest harbor I have ever seen), saw a lot of kangaroos (this one with a baby in her pouch), and then went scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef. The people were very friendly. . .I would really like to go back again to see this country that is about the same land mass as the continental U.S. but only has 20 million people.