Ships on Parade - and picture of the week!

I’m thinking I need to start a photo of the week posting…or month…a week may be too much pressure. Either way here is the photo of the week and its story.

Yesterday I had the chance to ride in the parade of ships that circled the sound and the Seattle piers as part of Seafair. (A traditional Seattle summertime festival of parades, hydroplanes, the Blue Angles, marathons, marching bands, the milk carton derby (my personal favorite), and of course the crowning of a local girl as Miss Seafair.)

So through people, relations, and those kind of odd connections that give you access to new things, I rode on the USS Princeton in the parade of ships. We boarded at the way too early hour of 8 am for breakfast, set sail, and filled our time parading around the Puget Sound with tours of the ship and meeting a few sailors. It was interesting even eye-opening—did you know that the severe gunmetal grey exterior of a navy ship is actually squishy and soft to the touch. It surely was a glimpse into a life far outside my own. Although I couldn’t shake the feeling of how odd it must have been for the many sailors to have three hundred or so guests crawling all over their home.

The USS Princeton was the lead boat in the parade and as such got to fire a seventeen-gun solute to honor an admiral that was sitting on one of the piers in Seattle’s waterfront. A sincere thanks to all the sailors for their stern advice about wearing the earplugs they passed out!

But the photo of the week (or month)!! By the end of the day everyone seemed to feel very comfortable on the ship, maybe a little too comfortable for life on a guided missile carrier. I couldn’t really wrap my brain around it. People milling about, talking, napping, even snogging on the missile launch pad! I’m not sure I would lie down in complete peace on the hatch door of a missile launcher. Are they crazy!?

The Saddest Thing

One thing has always stood as a symbol of change, rebirth, beauty, grace, hope...and that would be a butterfly. What else? A butterfly has always been a sign of good things in the world. Yesterday I watched a butterfly die.

I told my mom I would help her prune bushes in her yard and when I got to my first bush there was a beautiful swallowtail butterfly spread across the front of the bush. I stood for a moment to watch it. It just sat there slowly flapping it wings. So I quickly ran for my camera, knowing it would be gone by the time I got back, but hoping it would still be there. It was. I took my picture and then waited for it to fly away. It didn't.

I stepped around the bush and began pruning from the back to give it space. By the time I got to the front, it was still there. Slowly I transferred the butterfly, encouraging it to crawl to another branch. I trimmed the branches all around it (couldn't believe how close I got) and transferred it to yet another branch. Its wings flapped slower and slower. Finally when I couldn't get it to crawl anymore, I clipped the branch it was hanging from and slowly set it aside. Its wings only twitched and its body moved but once. At the end of the day it was still where I had set it - laying on its side, wings folded slightly up. It didn't move at all.

Somehow it just seemed like one of those mysteries in life you're not suppose to see. No one wants to see a butterfly die! I know this isn't an adventure tale, but it truly was one of the saddest things I've seen.

Big Sky Country

The last destination on this summer tour was Montana. Fairmont Hot Springs was the first stop, which was filled with tons of good food and lots of just sitting (a much need thing). And I mean you can't well go to Montana and not order a steak the size of your head.

Fairmont has a ton of pools which are filled with water cooled down to various temperatures from the hot springs. But here is a photo of a stream I took there which has nothing to do with anything because no one needs to see a photo of me in a swim suit, or flopping out of a water slide, or the brilliant red shade my back turned after too many hours in the sun.

After the Fairmont was a brief drive and short stay outside Helena at the log cabin of a family friend. (Resting up for the long haul back to Seattle the next day.) For a Montana summer it was clear and mild in temperature - perfect. This is the view of Lone Tree from the cabin, the ever so aptly Montana named hill in the distance with the single, lone tree a top it.




A true benefit of being out in the hills with no city lights or other people around are the stars! It just so happened to be a full moon the night we were there and the bright star in the sky wasn't a star at all. I took this photo as the moon was rising (exploring yet another setting on my camera). The single bright dot in the upper right side is Jupiter! And looking through a telescope, I could see the planet and four of its moons!! Way too cool!


Now the long haul home to rest. I'm looking forward to not having to fish around the bottom of my bag every night for my toothpaste...at least for a bit.

City views

The east coast tour is wrapping up - I fly out tomorrow to head back to Seattle, pick up a suitcase and drive out the following morning for Montana. Not the best laid plans as the jet lag driving could potentially be brutal, but we'll see how it works out.

So this last week in Boston has been good, catching up with people and even seeing some sights I haven't seen before. I took this picture from the fortieth floor of an apartment building downtown on the wharf. Can't say that I've ever seen a view like this of the city or been up on the fortieth floor of any apartment building in the city while I lived here.

Also took a quick tour up north near Swampscott for some beach sitting and hanging out. It's yet another view of Boston...way, way in the hazy distance with tooth pick buildings, but it's there. The city as viewed from the suburbs. It was the perfect day for wandering around and beach sitting (very low in the humidity department, but sunny and warm).



This could be called the Boston photo gallery, montage or something. Here's yet another view of the city and for those of you that know the city this picture is unreal. The last time I was here, the wharf area was still under construction from the big dig. It's now a big park and it blows my mind that you can stand at the aquarium and see the garden. That shouldn't be! There should be the highway and elevated train tracks in the way. But yet you can. As I said it blows my mind and makes the city feel that much smaller. I do have admit the park is nice even if does drastically change the look and feel of the city.

Camera works

Boston's South Station has become my second home of late - having gone in and out of there four times in the last week to and from NYC to Boston and on to Martha's Vineyard and back again. Lots of travel, but a relaxing weekend of good peeps and good food.

I thought I'd just post a few pictures. Here's a couple of the fireworks at the big Boston 4th of July celebration (can you tell I found a new fireworks setting on my camera - not very good at it)



And a few from the Vineyard. Look at all the little snails (periwinkle snails) hanging out at the water's edge!


And the giant dead things with slightly foul, rotting smells you find while beach combing.

New York Roaming

So after a rather relaxed few days in Boston, I headed to New York. I didn't have much of a plan other than to write and wander around. I'm beginning to be good at having no plan. So I sat in Central Park and tried to do some writing, but ended up people watching much more. And of course just sitting there opens you up to meeting many strange people. My favorite was the guy with barely any teeth that sat down and asked me if I had a boyfriend. I said no and I'm not looking. He said great I'm not looking for a boyfriend either. To that I had to laugh, but our courtship ended when I wouldn't buy his poem for my special discounted price of $1.

Now when I got off the plane in Boston and walked outside it was like getting hit in the chest with a fist. How did I forget how much I dislike humidity? And the humidity in NYC was much worse than Boston. So finding air conditioned places to escape was key. Some how in all my trips to NYC, I'd never made it to the public library. The Copley Library happens to be my favorite spot in Boston, so I was surprised when I walked passed and realized I'd never been inside the giant New York Library. All I can say is that it's immense, grand, beautiful, a mausoleum where you could walk miles without ever actually seeing a book and above all else well air conditioned. The stairways were endless and the entrance on par with some grand museum or palace (which to my way of thinking is a fitting place for books).


But the one thing I did stumble upon while there (and I do remember being told they were there at some point but I never put it together) were they original Winnie-the-Pooh, Tigger, Kanga, Piglet, and Eeyore dolls. They looked well loved and fitting of their place in the library museum. But I had to walk around the back of the glass case just to make sure Eeyore's tail had actually been pinned back on...it was. In fact his tail looked like it had been stitched, pinned, and stitched together again. All was right with the world and somehow it up held my faith in books.

In the three days of walking around the city I've calculated I walked about 95 blocks - from east 68th street to about west 4th and over and back up. And 57 of those blocks were in one day. My feet were about to fall off. I stopped at many parks, cafes and stores along the way. It was a good visit of lunch with friends, and getting lost in hours of book wondering at the Strand (a must stop for every visit).

I'm heading back to Boston (writing this from the bus - wifi is a marvelous thing) for the big holiday and then off to Martha's Vineyard for the weekend. Hope you all have a Happy 4th of July!

A day behind

I don't know when it happened, but somehow I got a day behind. I stopped in Orem, UT for a fabulous and extremely hot visit with some friends (97 degrees in the evening isn't exactly my idea of fair weather conditions). And sadly I don't really have any pictures from there because I forgot my camera the day we went up to scenic view points and when I did have it I was distracted and forgot to take any at all.

I left Utah and took two days to drive back to Seattle. I left with enough time to get back, do laundry, and repack everything to fly out to Boston. I stopped on the Idaho/Oregon boarder for the night on my drive, but when I got to the hotel that I had made reservations for, they kindly informed that I was a no-show for the previous night. I had made my reservation for the wrong day. I don't even know how that happened. I stood at the counter with my mouth open.

But I got it sorted out and made it home, did my laundry, and repacked. The night before my flight, I logged onto the computer to check-in and ... oops... apparently I fly out on Tuesday night, not Monday night as I had thought and planned. I sat there staring at the computer trying to readjust my brain. It's true - I fly out tonight and I've been packed and ready for two days now. So I'm not quite sure how it happened or where my brain is at, but it seems my next adventure will start when it's good and ready to.

Research

Well my plan for this trip was to gather research in Denver. Now that I'm here in Denver the research is nothing like I could have predicted. I have written the section of the book where my characters are in Denver and when I was done I was not thrilled. It felt flat and forced. So I figured I needed to come to Denver and figure out why that was. A luxury I know.

I went to all the places I had previously figured my characters would go and took pictures, made notes, made friends, and had things happen no amount of my imagination could have dreamt up. Isn't that what research is for - I mean seriously. So here are a few of my favorite happenings and photos (some related to the story and some just crazy enough they needed to be documented).

This photo is hands down my favorite one I've taken since being in Denver. It's a good close-up-can-you-tell-what-this-is type photo. It's the bra and underwear racks at the Ross clothing store in Denver. That's a lot of undergarments!! All bright and colorful too. and yes I got several strange looks while taking this photo, but how could I resist.

Just after that I was sitting outside writing notes down while they were still in my head and this guy comes and says, "You a writer? You are a writer! I need someone to write my life story!" He then proceeded to tell me he was a homeless street musician who calls Denver his home and he's gonna make it big so just all you out there take note, I met the next huge flute player.

But of all the places I stopped and strange encounters I had, the best was the prayer revival that occurred in the middle of a baseball diamond. I'm not sure I can even do the feeling and the sight justice, but I can say I've lived to hear bible readings spoken from a pitcher's mound. A group of folks brought the spirit of the Lord to the inner city baseball field and I 'm not sure what it was all about, but I know it was something to see. Bowing, stamping, and clapping in the great outdoors just must sound better than in a church.

Road Funnies

So when I drive from place to place I try to first do things I haven't done before or go to places I've never seen and second to notice things that make a good story and make me laugh.

Today I drove from the California coast straight into the Mojave desert and spit out the other side. Firsts - I drove mostly interstates today, stopped in Barstow, CA (where the heat practically made me fall over) and there I paid almost $5 a gallon for gas! Also, among the firsts, I drove through Las Vegas - in a snails paced traffic jam - and took pictures as I went. Driving into the city, through it, and out the other side really make you realize that it's a big darn city in the middle of BFE!!


As I was leaving Las Vegas, up ahead on the highway was an armored truck driving into the middle of the desert. I stepped on the gas. What kind of story exit from Vegas would it be if I didn't chase down an armored truck...and fly right on by.

Okay and on the funny side, as I passed the armored truck there was another semi pulled over on the shoulder of the highway. Out on the roadside, in front of the pulled over semi was the driver doing push-ups in the hotter than hades weather wearing black jeans and no shirt. You don't see that every day! Does he have a routine? Was he keeping himself awake? Was he expending extra energy from the smorgasbord of energy pills I see hanging next to the cash registers at truck stops? Seriously the little baggies of multi-colored energy pills intrigue me, but are not half as funny as the bags of goat weed.

Back in the Saddle

So this was meant to be posted several days ago, but my access to the internet was unceremoniously cut off and I haven’t been able to get on in a few days...

It's been almost seven months since I was on a long road trip and some how I don't remember the saddle being so painful. I mean it's awesome to be on the road and I've missed it, but somehow I don't remember the cramping and literal pain in the ass from the last long trip. About four hours into this trip down to California I couldn't sit still. The heel of my driving foot went numb and my butt fluctuated between tingly numbness and no feeling at all. I don’t remember that problem from before, but then maybe it’s like what they say will happen when you work out—your body cramps, aches, and fights everything you want to do to it, but if you keep going eventually your body will give up and everything becomes easy. You push through - or at least I hear that’s what happens. So maybe driving is like that, if you have to keep going you eventually be comfortable..or numb. The second day of driving was much much better, even though it was through the rain and fog.

I made it to Santa Clara, CA on Wed. night where I’m staying for the next week or so (and given that I had no internet, I leave tomorrow). My first day, I didn’t do much because my car got locked in my friend’s garage and I had no access. So I took a walk around the neighborhood, down to Santa Clara University and the old mission and pretended I could blend in and still pass as an undergraduate. I sat outside the student union building in the sun and dutifully edited a section of my book—Fat Chance—like I a final paper I needed to finish. I’m not sure I really fooled anyone, but it was fun to pretend.


But I am liking the days of writing in the sun. Yesterday, I took myself to Vasona Lake Park in Los Gatos and did some writing in a big grass field by the lake. Here’s proof that I actually did do work on this trip. I spent all day there and am now sporting some rather red legs—sunscreen does work but only when you remember to put it on. I seemed to have missed a few places.

Sunday…Monday Excursions

I thought I’d drop in a new post as I have shamefully neglected any sort of posting in the past few months. But while I was watching TV the other night, I saw that the first episode of the Discovery Channel series on the rebuilding of Greensburg, KS is going to air this Sat. I thought I should post and make you all watch it. So watch!

Sadly I have been off the road for a bit, save for a few weekend excursions and a brief cruise trip to Mexico for my friend’s birthday. But plans for a new trip are in the works to gather more research for Fat Chance. The writing has begun and is going well, but there are holes in the research I gathered last summer. Hmm maybe that’s because I only now fully know what’s going to happen in the story. I need to make a few stops to gather more ideas. To Denver I must go.

But I can’t leave a post without my latest adventure or pictures so… On Monday of this week (after an amazing SCBWI writer’s conference in Bellevue, WA) I went up to the tulip festival, the fields of tulips farmed by the folks north of Seattle. Well the festival officially ended last week, but that didn’t really make me think twice. The first field I came across I was so excited, I pulled over in the trailing splashes of some heavy rain only to sink in two inches of mud. Trying to get close to the field was like high stepping through quicksand.

The closer I got to the fields I saw that there was a tractor out in the middle plowing tulips. Is there anything sadder than a field of stunning flowers that have been beheaded? I’m not kidding. They chop all the petals off and leave the green stalks to die so then the bulbs can be dug up and sold. Look at the troughs of yellow heads.


I began to panic that I was in a race against an agricultural guillotine. I had to see the fields before they were gone. I need not have worried though. They weren’t going to turn away my five bucks at the tourist stops and fields. I was satisfied and got to see the acres of flowers I’d come to see.