Sleeping on a Cloud & Brunch at The Ramp

Saturday 9/4/10

John's & Rory's bed is like sleeping on a cloud!  A pillow top, king, mattress topped with a memory foam pad!!!!  We slept like babies and then lounged in bed, drinking coffee and admiring the gorgeous view for most of the morning. IT WAS WONDERFUL!!!!!

Because we looked like Cousin It, we drove to Pleasanton, which was kind've bitter sweet, and got hair cuts.  Sarah and Sue were funny as usual and we enjoyed seeing them again.  It is no small feat to find someone you like, who does a great job, to cut our hair.

Then, of all dreadful things, we went to the storage unit and put some items from our trip north into it, and took out several things that we planned to take to Nola.  Groan!  Going to the storage unit is never fun, but we were pleased to see that everything was still in place and nothing from the top had fallen. Yay for the packing queen!

We then went to Mario's & Mary's house for dinner and thoroughly enjoyed telling them stories of our trip and catching up. Mario made some killer avocado salsa and Mary fried taco shells.  It was great to see them and we'll miss them while we're gone!  Also, it was most unusual to leave Livermore and drive to San Francisco to sleep. Happily, this time I did not have to wear a bucket on my head.



Sunday 9/5/10

We lounged in bed again, then met Liz & Michelle at The Ramp for brunch.  It was a beautiful, warm day, and after a few cocktails and full bellies, we returned to the treehouse and took a nap.  This, of course, thrilled Phyl since I am not a napper and she LOVES naps.

"I don't travel much"

We awoke excited because by nightfall, we'd be in San Francisco.  Wanting to take a scenic byway through the Mt. Shasta area, but being unable to find a suitable one on line, we stopped at the Klamath Falls Visitor's Center.

G- Hi!  We're heading to San Francisco, and we'd like to take a scenic byway in the Mount Shasta area, along the way, but it has to be a short one, because we don't have a lot of extra time.  Can you recommend one that wouldn't be longer than about an hour?

Dumb blonde girl - I don't know of any.  I've never been to Mt. Shasta except once as a child we rented a houseboat for a week. 

G- Well, it doesn't have to be at Mt. Shasta, if you're more familiar with this area, is there a nice scenic byway around here?

Dumb blonde girl - I don't know.  I don't really travel very much.  I can give you a map.  Maybe it can help you.  (walks off to find map)

G- (looks at Phyl and rolls eyes) I think we're being punked!

P- Really!  Are you kidding me?  Who works at the VISITOR'S CENTER and knows nothing about the area and cannot help VISITORS?  It's not like we're asking a difficult question!  Even if they gave you no training, wouldn't you make it a point to learn the area so that you could actually help VISITORS if your job is working at the VISITOR'S CENTER?!!!!!  Durrrrrrrr.........

G- One would think so.  Maybe she's 'special' and they hire 'special' people at this visitor's center.

P- She's not 'special'.  She's just stupid!  I'm going to the car.  Get the map and let's go.

The map actually did provide more information than dumb blonde girl, but there wasn't any byway that could be worked into our schedule, and we were excited to get back to our hearts in San Francisco.  Fortunately, in that area, the scenery along Highway 97, then Interstate 5, is gorgeous!!!  The most fantastic thing is that Mt. Shasta is spectacular and can be seen for miles.  With only one mountain, we were far less confused than we were in the high desert, just south of Dufor, OR, the day before.

We didn't have far to go before we crossed into California and had to stop at the check point.

P- Hello!

Ca. Border Agent - Good morning.  Do you have any fruits or vegetables?

P- Nope.  Just us. (this joke seemed to be lost on him)

Ca. Border Agent - Ok, thank you.  Have a nice day.

G- Now how does that protect anything?  We could have 6 dead bodies in the back under all of our crap. Or we could be carrying pounds of cocaine. Or we could have every fruit and vegetable known to man.

P- He didn't ask about bodies or coke, so apparently that's not a problem.  And since we'll be passing through Weed, CA soon, there's no need for us to be transporting drugs. I guess we didn't look particularly suspicious.

G- Oh, you definitely look suspicious.  In fact, you're funny looking. Even though the town of Weed is really named after the founder of the town, I'm like a silly child because the name still cracks me up.

The mountainous area of Mt. Shasta, and the gorgeous, but unbelievably low, Lake Shasta soon gave way to the flat, agricultural area and we passed groves of olive trees, sunflowers, fruit & nut trees, and soybeans. This area was pretty warm and we had the air conditioner on until we crossed the Richmond Bridge and hit the bay area.

G- Ah!  Roll the windows down and feel the cool of San Francisco!

P- I love this city!

G- Me too!  Look at the fog surrounding the Golden Gate Bridge.  I love this view from this side.

We relished in the cool breeze and savored the views of our beloved adopted city.  As we crossed the Bay Bridge, the fog was wrapped around the sides of the city as though in an embrace, and the center of the city glowed in the sunshine.  We headed for John's & Rory's tree house.  They were out of town for a few days and, and knowing how much we love the view, were gracious enough to leave us a key.  We cooked dinner, something we missed while on the road, and we enjoyed wine on the balcony.  Soon Shannon joined us and we spent several hours catching up. We were looking forward to seeing our friends again and staying in one place for a week.

How many Mt. Hoods are there?

We left Larry's on US-197, then US 97, headed for Klamath Falls, Oregon. Phyllis desperately wanted to white water raft and, although I find the proposition frightening, I have agreed to do so, because I really do want to do it. We had discussed a trip on the Deschutes River, but the weather was expected to be rainy and the water is ice cold. Contrary to what we had thought, wet suits would not be provided and people usually raft in their bathing suits. Crazy buggers! That water is just slightly too warm to put your beer in to "ice" it down and hypothermia is not on our bucket list. We did pass the area where the rafting trip would have traveled and it was beautiful and didn't look very scary.

Just past Dufor, Oregon, the town where Larry had been Postmaster, the road climbed to a high desert and we were treated to exquisite views of, what we thought was, Mount Hood.

P- Look to your left! That is incredible!! Is that Mt. Hood?

G- I think so. It would be in that direction.

P- Look up a head!!! That's gorgeous too!

G- Wow! That is spectacular! I know we just turned, but would that be Mt. Hood?

P- What other mountain would it be?

G- I'm not sure, but it seems to be following us, and that's weird.

This conversation continued for approximately an hour, with each turn in the road or crest of a new hill revealing incredible views of Mount Hood. Once the road leveled off and straightened out, we stopped at a scenic overview which provided an explanation for the fantastic views of Mt. Hood we experienced in every direction. Turns out that we were looking at Mt. Adams, Mt. Washington, and Mt. Jefferson.

G- Well, this explains it.

P- Yes, it explains that we are retarded!

G- But why did we not see any of these mountains before? Crazy I tell ya!

We continued our drive south passing The Three Sisters and Three Finger Jack, passed through Bend, Oregon and decided to take a detour to Sun River. From Sun River, we continued slightly west on Scenic Cascades Lakes Byway, even though we had no idea where we were going and Fran was of no assistance because she couldn't pick up a satellite connection. No matter, how lost can we get? We'll eventually find a way back to US-97 or we'll ask someone. Seeing no signs of civilization or an obvious return to the main highway, we stopped at Devil Lake (I'm running out of adjectives to describe the beauty of this area) and asked a woman (a hot grandma.............dare I say GILF?........some would definitely say so, but alas, those people would be 'middle aged'.) about the eventual destination of the Scenic Byway. She gave excellent advice and we decided to continue on this road.

Each turn was more beautiful than the next, other cars were few and the day was warm and sunny. As instructed by GILF, we stopped at Elk Lake Lodge and watched crazy people swim in water so cold it could stop your heart. The scene was idyllic, although it could conjure images of Jason running from the woods to slit your throat, or maybe a something from Halloween 1-15, if you were there at night, and if you watched too many dumb horror flicks when you were young.

We stopped in a small clearing where the stream that followed the road made a sharp turn into the woods. Here we sat in our chairs and enjoyed a late lunch of cheese and crackers and drank a couple of beers. The stream babbled, cascading over the rocks, and a small bird fought the current and dove underwater, eating whatever was to be found in the algae.

P- Listening to this water and the beer makes me have to pee.

G- Practice with Pinky and go pee behind those trees.

P- I don't have to practice with Pinky, I already know how to use it, as long as I can sit, that's what I'm gonna do, and I see a log over there with my name on it.

G- Ok, but don't whine to me when we get to Asia and you pee on your Keens. I put the toilet paper and the doggie bag (for the used paper) on the passenger side floor. I'm gonna practice with Pinky because it still takes me too long to psych myself up to pee standing up.

P- Whatever. I don't have the same freaky problems as you.

We packed up the car and I went off to practice with Pinky. I was trying to concentrate when I was rudely interrupted.............

P- Do you think you'll be able to pee before sunset because I'd like to find a hotel before dark.

G- Shut up! If you keep interrupting me, we'll be here forever.

P- We already have been here forever; just sit on the damn log and go!

G- Woman!  When my hands are free I'm gonna choke you!
 

Finally, success was achieved and we returned to the road.  As we drove down Hwy. 97, the area began to look familiar (we were there in July 2009) and we passed the turn off for Crater Lake.  We would have loved to have taken the detour to see it again, but it was getting late.  We reached Lower Klamath Lake as the sun was beginning to dip behind the mountains and the dark mountain outline was silhouetted by orange of varying shades.  I love these sunsets!

Everyone Has An Opinion

Today Larry chauffeured us around in his car. We stopped at a pretty little park named Sorosis, with a beautiful rose garden planted for fallen veterans.


G- Are you kidding me? Who's idea what it to name a park after a liver disease?

P- I don't know, but it makes me miss our friends.

We stopped and asked a lady to take our photo. She was sitting with an older man and her daughter on a park bench.

Man- Where are you from?

P- We are originally from New Orleans, but we've been living in San Francisco for the past 2 years.

Man - I was wondering what country that accent was from.

G- Well, some people do consider New Orleans a 3rd world country, but it's actually just a city in the deep south.

P- (as we walk back to the car) Did that man just say New Orleans was a country?

Larry- Got some brilliant ones in Southern Oregon.

We then crossed the gorge and viewed many petroglyphs that had been taken from the gorge before it was flooded by the dam.  After the petroglyphs we went to Maryhill Winery which is perched on the rim of the Gorge surrounded by vines.  The setting was stunning and the wind, far too powerful to be called a breeze, was blowing with great force.   While trying to enjoy our tasting, we met a gentleman and his wife from St. Petersberg who, of course, asked about our accents, then initiated a conversation about Katrina.

Handle bar mustache man - I never understood why people did not evacuate sooner or why the governor didn't call for a mandatory evacuation.

G- It came up so quickly, there wasn't enough advance warning. The storm wasn't even on our minds on Friday.  the media wasn't making a big deal of it and they make a big deal of everything. At that time it was still on the other side of Florida.  The first we really heard of it coming to New Orleans was on Saturday and it hit on Monday morning.

Handlebar mustache man - That is definitely not the case.  The head of the National Weather Center called your governor and told "him" a week before the storm hit that "he" should call for a mandatory evacuation.

G- (looks at Phyllis, rolls eyes and says under her breath) Every asshole has an opinion!

P- Hello Mr. I know Everything, the governor was a WOMAN and there is no way in hell the head of the NWC could predict where a hurricane will strike a week in advance.

G- And I don't think people get that you just can't willy-nilly call for an evacuation of a million people everytime a hurricane is going to come into the gulf.

P- Scoot down and stop talking to him.  Drink your wine!!

Larry - Is he annoying you ladies?

Larry next took us to the Maryhill Museum, built by Sam Hill, that included Rodin's, numerous Native American artifacts from all over the Pacific Northwest and into Alaska, and many items donated by his friend, the Queen Marie of Romania.  The Museum also had a spectacular view of the Gorge and a sculpture garden. 

A few miles down the road was the tomb of Sam Hill which sat on the very edge of the Gorge, behind an exact replica of Stonehenge, a memorial to local veterans who died in WWI.  A full day behind us, we stopped at a Thai Restaurant for dinner and returned to Larry's house for another evening of hilarity watching episodes of Sordid Lives, The Series.

Bridge Over Troubled Waters

With each mile that we traveled, the weather became worse and the sun soon gave way to rain clouds, then a thick fog, then a misty rain. We did see pretty, colorful flowers and deer along the road on the way up. By the time we arrived at the Timberline Lodge, it was a steady rain.


P- So much for the beautiful view Larry told us about.

G- Well, let's go see the lodge which is supposed to be very pretty and Larry said there was a good restaurant.

P- Between the rain and the construction covering the front of the lodge, it's hard to see it's beauty.

The construction forced us to go through a side entrance and take an ugly elevator to the main floor. The construction was impressive in a Grand Canyon Lodge type way, but on a much smaller scale. On the way back to the elevator we got trapped behind the residents of the Shady Oaks Rest Home toting their canes, walkers and oxygen tanks. It must have taken 20 minutes just to get to the elevator and another 20 for all the people to descend the one floor to the exit door.

G- We gotta get out of here! I cannot miss the draft!!

P- What time does it start? 3:30?

G- Yes. And I need to review my papers first.

P- Alright freak! I promised you that that we'd stop whatever we were doing so you could participate in the draft.

G- But I didn't think about the lack of cell phone service up here. Get me off this mountain.



Fortunately, going back from somewhere is always faster than getting there and Gina was on the phone with her fantasy football partner, Joe, by 3:10. We hit the Columbia River by 3:20 and crossed an entirely steel bridge onto the Washington state side of the gorge.

P- I don't like this bridge. Stormy is wiggling and it makes me nervous. She's not getting good traction. I've never seen a bridge where you drive on only steel grate. Why is there no concrete?

G- What? Now I'm a structural engineer? We have driven on steel bridges before. Drive faster and you'll get across it quicker.

P- I just don't like it. It's too narrow. They need to do something about this. It think it's unsafe.

G- For gawd sake, Gladys, the bridge has probably been here for over 50 years. While I'm on the phone doing my draft, you can call someone with Washington DOT and tell them about your concerns. You should just be happy that there are no bears on the damn bridge. Now please get me on the other side and let's stop at that park over there so I can set up my papers and get on the phone for my draft before my damn head explodes!!!!

P- I don't know why I keep you! You know nothing about bridges over forest streams, over gorge rivers and couldn't defend me if a bear attacked. You give me nothing but bridges over troubled waters!!

G- Shut up, fool and pull over!!! It's 3:26!!!! And I'm starving?

P- Yes. Let's eat the picnic lunch I packed since we didn't get to do it on the rainy mountain.

G- Great! Give me a beer and make me a sandwich while I pick my team.

P- Yes mam!

G- Thank you honey!!!

P- Go pick a good team, my sweetie, and I'll take care of the food. I know you love your football.

It was awesome picking my fantasy team, via telephone with my buddy Joe, as I overlooked the Columbia River Gorge. Phyl sat next to me and kept my beer cold. The sun came out again and all was good with the world! We returned to Larry's and told him about our day. He cooked us a delicious halibut dinner and then we laughed our asses off watching the movie Sordid Lives. How is it possible that we have gotten to these ages and had not seen that movie?

Fatuous Fruit Lady

Of course, we slept in. It's one of the perks of early retirement. Larry's basement accommodation was the size of many San Francisco apartments with an attached bathroom and office. It was cool and dark and the perfect sleeping environment. Larry, on the other hand, is an early riser, but was happy to have more coffee and cut up with us once we finally got up. We invited Larry to go with us up to Mt. Hood, but he had just taken delivery of his new sleep number bed and wanted to stay home to set it up. Apparently he was tired of sleeping on a huge lump.


Larry - Would you like for me to cook dinner tonight? I have Halibut or Salmon steaks that I caught on my last Alaskan fishing trip.

P- Larry, we never turn down a fish dinner! Sounds great!

We headed up to Mt. Hood and the road led us through a valley of orchards. The trees were laden with several varieties of pears, chestnuts and various other unidentifiable fruits. We stopped at a fruit stand to buy some fruit, and overhearing us talking, the fruit stand lady asked us where we were from. (Apparently we have accents of some sort because people are always asking us where we're from, and our accents don't match our California license plates.) After telling her we were from New Orleans but had lived in San Francisco for the past 2 years, and considering the 5th anniversary of Katrina had just passed.....................

Fruit lady- Were you effected by that Katrina thing?

G- Yes. Anyone who lived in the whole New Orleans metro area, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast, was impacted by Katrina.

Fruit Lady - Did you leave?

P- Well, we evacuated the day before Katrina hit, but we didn't move away from New Orleans because of Katrina.

Fruit lady- How is the city?

P- Still recovering.

Fruit lady- Can I ask you something?

G- Sure.

Fruit lady- Why did those people move back there after it was destroyed?

G- (purses lips and turns head to have extensive "eyes only" conversation with Phyllis) *eye conversation*.... Are you shittin me? I know that woman did not just say THOSE PEOPLE to us about moving back to Nola!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

P- Well, let me ask you a question. Is this your home?

Fruit lady - yes.

P- And if Mt. Hood suddenly erupted and destroyed the area, wouldn't you come back and rebuilt?

Fruit lady- (pauses and thinks for a long time) No.

P- You'd just move somewhere else?

Fruit lady -Yes, probably so.

P- Ok. (stares a hole through Gina and with eye conversation says............ I am done talking to this stupid bitch) Is there a place where I can wash this fruit?

Fruit lady - Yes, right out there by that table.

G- (relieved that Phyl walked away without resorting to violence) It's difficult to explain, but New Orleans isn't just a place to live. It's a city with a soul and it grabs hold of you and becomes a part of you. Also, generations of families live in New Orleans, some within a few block radius. Abandoning New Orleans would be tantamount to abandoning your soul and your family.

Fruit lady - (looking at me like I'm crazy) Well, ok.

G- It's something you have to feel. It can't be explained. Thank you, have a good day.

P-(back in Stormy) How can you live in a place and not consider it home? This area is beautiful! You'd think she'd have a little bit of an attachment to it.

G- Babe, people aren't like us.

We continued our drive to Mt. Hood and at it's base the valley receded and we entered a winding forested road. After a while we stopped for a short hike. There was a fallen tree bridge across the river which had clearly been recently built and the banks of the river were full of tree stumps and roots.

P- Look at the stumps. Why do you think they're like that?

G- Not sure, but clearly this section was manipulated by man. Maybe when they built the bridge.

P- Walk across the bridge quickly. It freaks me out.

G- You want to hike up one of these trails?

P- No. I dont' see anyone else around and what if there are bears.

G- Oh for gawd sake! Again with the bears.

P- There could be bears!!!

G- Ok, let's go. We need to get to the top of Mt. Hood anyway. I have no cell phone service here and my fantasy football draft starts at 5:30 in New Orleans, 3:30 here.

P-Look, I know you're not worried about the bears and last time I wasn't as worried because there was a lady with a baby carriage, but this time it's just you and me and you could make it back to Stormy quicker than me.

G- I would not just sit in Stormy while a bear ate you. I would fight him off with my big guns (flexes biceps)

P-Oh, I feel so much safer! (as we cross the bridge again) Do you know why they would have left that stump in the middle of the stream?

G- Gladys, do I look like a freaking Park Ranger? I don't know. There could be a good reason or it could just be because man thinks he knows better than nature and in a decade or so we'll find out that changing the river screwed up the ecological system. Like not allowing fire near the Sequoias basically eradicated a few generations of trees. Let's get back into Stormy before a bear gets you. Google your questions when we get back to Larry's. Keep asking me questions and I might let the bear eat you!!

　

CSI Champion

Last night Alyce picked us up from the airport. We are positive that she will be happy for us to finally take all of our crap and go. We have come and gone from her home 3 times and really, really appreciate her hospitality and patience.


Today we slept in and repacked the bags and the car. Our attire was changing from cruise clothes to warmer weather, casual clothes. We left Alyce's around 11:00 am and headed to The Dalles, Oregon, in the Columbia River Gorge. I believe we mentioned before that we were Couchsurfing on this trip. Carole & Brud on Shaw Island in the San Juan Islands, were our first couchsurfing experience and we were quite taken by the whole adventure.

On our way through Oregon, we attempted to Couchsurf in the Columbia River Gorge area, but could not make a good connection. We found, and began to email with, Larry and we really wanted to stay with him because he sounded like fun. Larry was unavailable on our trip north, so we arranged to stay with him as we headed south on our trek back to San Francisco.

P- Larry sounds like a hoot!

G- Yes, I'm looking forward to meeting him. He's a retired Post Master.

P- Do we have to worry about him going postal on us?

G- I doubt it. He shouldn't be pissed off anymore. He's retired.

We drove into the western and more lush side of the Gorge, on the Oregon side (it runs along the border of Oregon & Washington). We stopped at Wahkeena Falls and took a short hike. Then we went to Multnomah Falls and stopped at several vista points along the way. The area is beautiful and lush, as we had expected.

Larry would not be home until 8:30 pm, so we had dinner at a Mexican Restaurant.

P- What do really know about Larry? He could be some crazy ax murderer.

G- Well, his bio sounded good; of course, it could all be horse shit, but he did have several references from people who had previously stayed with him. They all had nothing but good things to say.

P- Well I feel pretty comfortable doing this with you, but I doubt I'd couchsurf if I were traveling alone.

G- I'm sure he's not going to chop us up and eat us or anything. If he did that, he wouldn't have anyone to write good reviews about him and someone would have found out by now. But he could be some freaky old pervert who has cameras set up in the bedroom and films you for his later, perverse enjoyment.

P- You are a sick bitch! How do you think of this shit?

G- I read to many things and watch too much TV. Remember that attorney in New Orleans who was filming women and when the police caught him he had hundreds of tapes?

P- No, I don't remember that. Who the hell was that?

G- Don't remember his name but I knew of him. Never would have suspected him. Can't be too careful. I'll check the room when we get there.

P- Ok CSI Champion. You make sure the place is secure.

G- Go ahead, make fun. I'm just keeping us off of YouTube. Naked or something.

After dinner we drove to Larry's house and found a note instructing us to wait for him on his back patio.

G- What a beautifully manicured yard. And the patio is precious too.

P- Are those flamingos? Is that a disco ball?

G- Yes, I believe that they are. Ok, any worries I had about Larry just sashayed out the door.

Just then Larry arrived. He was a big teddy bear and we loved him immediately.

　

Pencil Pecker!!!

Our luggage arrived at the airport before we did and was waiting in the Holland America holding room.

G- Let's go get our bags, check in with Continental, then find a place to get a burger and a beer. I'm hungry and I can't find the Lido deck.

P- Sounds like a good plan.

G- Hi. These 2 bags are ours.

Pencil Pecker (tall, skinny, pimple faced boy of about 19, named Steve by his parents) - ok, I just need to see your ID.

We show him our IDs and he matches them up with the tags. We walk out of the baggage room, dragging our HEAVY bags, and head for Continental.

G- Ok, I appreciate that they're trying to keep our bags secure by checking our IDs, but last night when everyones' bag was sitting outside their doors in the hallway, I could have put my ID on any bag I wanted. It's not as though we're having to show the bottom half of the luggage tag because there was no bottom half.

P- Whatever. Let's just get rid of them so we can eat. What does that say? The Continental counter is not manned until 3:00 pm?!?

G- Damn it to hell! I'm not dragging this bag around for 4 hours. Let's bring them back to the baggage room. The guy said it was open until 6:00 PM.

P- (to the older, possibly wiser, man) We just claimed our bags 2 minutes ago, only to discovery that the Continental counter doesn't open until 3:00 pm. We'd like to leave our bags here until then so we can go get something to eat without dragging them around.

Older man - Ok, come this way. But I'm not sure that's allowed.

G- What do you mean it's not allowed. Aren't you open until 6:00 PM?

Older man to Pencil Pecker - These ladies just got their bags and would like to return them to the room because Continental is closed until 3:00 PM.

Pencil Pecker - (in his I'm a drone without a brain tone) No! Bags cannot be returned once they leave the room.

P- What are you talking about. We just got them 2 minutes ago.

Pencil Pecker - That's the rule.

G- Why were we not told the rule before we took our bags?

Pencil Pecker - It's not our rule it's the TSA's. It's for your safety.

G- That was not my question. My safety? My bag sat in the hallway for hours unattended. And now you're protecting me by not taking it back after I've had it for 2 minutes? Why were we not informed of the rule?

P - That's not acceptable. Where is your supervisor?

Pencil Pecker - It's a TSA rule.

G-(to Phyllis) Son of a bitch! I already hate the damn TSA. Morons! All of them!!! I'm not fighting with this little bastard. I cannot stand being talked down to by this little pencil dick bastard who just went through puberty 2 weeks ago!!! I'm leaving.

P- I am not dragging this bag around for 5 hours because it has been in my possession for 2 minutes.

G- I'm having flashbacks of that little son of a bitch Harahan cop who almost took me to jail just after Katrina and I may become violent. I'm going to sit down to breath and let it go.

P- I'm not letting it go. It is too stupid to let go!!!!!

G- Ok. I'll be sitting over there.

Gina went into the airport and began telephone bitch fest with Connor. Phyl waited for the supervisor.

G- (to Connor on the phone) OOOOH. Now she's fussing at the supervisor. She's leaning in like she does when she's drunk or pissed off. The supervisor seems to be arguing back. It can't be good. Now pencil pecker has been brought into the conversation. He'd better watch his cockiness or Phyl might rip out his lungs. She's very pissed off and I'm afraid I didn't do much to discourage it because I'm very pissed off too, I just don't feel like fighting.

Connor- Oh God! Don't get taken to jail. I'm too far away to bail you out.

Supervisor - I'm sorry mam, but we cannot take the bag back once you claim it.

P - If that is the rule, why was I not told BEFORE I took my bags?

Supervisor - You should have been told. No one got on your bus and went over the rules with you.

P- No they did not.

Supervisor - Well I'm sorry and I'll address that with the person who was supposed to do it, but we still can't take back the bags.

P- Do you realize that I could have put a bomb the size of Alaska in each of my bags last night before I put them in the hallway to sit, by themselves. Then, without even coming into the airport, I could have detonated the bombs and blown this whole place to hell. But you, and the TSA in their infinite wisdom, are worried about me putting something into my bag in the previous 2 minutes while standing in the middle of the airport!?! it's utterly dumbfounding!!!!!!

Pencil Pecker - You can take your bag downstairs and for only $7.00 a bag they'll hold it for you.

P- Well that makes a lot of sense. I guess a bomb can blow up in the Holland America baggage area but not in the baggage area downstairs? That's brilliant! I just paid Holland America thousands of dollars for a cruise and now I'm going to pay more money to have someone else hold my bag? I don't think so.

(to pencil pecker) You go away. (to Supervisor) This is absolutely infuriating.

Supervisor - Sorry mam.

G - (to Connor on the phone) Well, it looks like she's given up and we'll be dragging our bags around. Let me go. She's seething and I think her head is about to explode.

P- Fuckers!

G- I see pencil pecker gets to live.

P- I'd love to just choke the cocky bastard until his eyes bulged, but I'm not going to jail in Alaska. I hate snow.

G- Let's go get a cocktail!

A few cocktails did take the edge off, but at 3:00 pm when the Continental counter finally opened, the line was about 100 people deep. While in line we removed our cuticle scissors, toothpaste, wine opener, hand lotion, and all other possible plane hijacking weapons out of our carry ons and put them into the bags we would check.

Airports and airlines suck and having to use them will be the worst part of our around the world journey.

Seward - Anchorage

The drive to Anchorage was very beautiful! At first we drove through densely forested mountains hugged by fog. The bus driver was not a freak like the Juneau woman and told us interesting trivia along the way. ......... there was a plant called Fire Weed growing along the road; so called because it was the first thing to grow back after a fire. Also, when the Fire Weed started to die, you had about 6 weeks until winter arrived. Important to know when living in Alaska. And those markers attached to near the tops of the trees along the road? Snow gauge. That was scary!!!

Then, because we were making good time, we were able to stop at a Glacier and at it's base was a stream filled with spawning salmon.

G- They are such a beautiful color red.

Random man in crowd to bus driver - Can these be eaten?

Bus driver - No. Once they turn red they don't taste good. They are about to spawn and die.

P- Well that sucks! Spawn then die.

Random woman in the crowd to bus driver - Are those fish spawning?

Bus driver - No. Those are males fighting to spawn with the females.

P- Well that figures!

Back on the bus we turned and drove along a lake and the sun came out. We saw several bald eagles and Beluga Whales!!!! Anchorage was bigger than we expected with a population of about 300K people.

We were dropped off at the airport at about 11:00 AM. Oh joy! Our flight was at 5:20 PM.

Get off our ship!!!

Today we awoke in Seward, Alaska and they were tossing people off the ship by 6:30 AM. Fortunately we did not disembark until 8:15 AM. Last night we had to have our bags in the hallway by 1:00 AM. We returned from the show at 9:30pm and the hall was filled with bags. These damn old people had probably had their bags out by 8:00 PM and went to sleep at 8:30 PM. On the Carnival Cruises we've taken drunk people were stuffing their crap into their bags at 1:05 AM as they dragged them into the hallway, and were headed back out to party for the last remaining hours.

We packed our bags at 9:30 PM and headed up to the Crow's Nest for a final night of dancing.........disco night!!!

P- Are you kidding me? There's no one here.

G- Well, let's just sit and have a drink. Maybe more people will come after the late dinner seating.

After 30 minutes............

P- Ok, it doesn't appear anyone is coming and I'm falling asleep.

G- Damn old people! I wanted to dance. But I'm falling asleep too. If we ever take another cruise, we have to find some happy medium between Carnival's Animal House and Holland America's Cocoon.

P- Well, they gotta get to bed early so they can get up early to get off the ship.

G- Hell, they get up early every damn day!!! They stop serving breakfast at 9:30 AM!!! I am not even hungry yet at 9:30 AM!!

P- Quit ya bitchin and let's go to bed like the rest of the old people.

G- Speak for yourself!!!

We sat eating breakfast and talking to Jackie & Hal until 8:10AM, then we disembarked and got on our bus for the 2 hour drive to Anchorage Airport.