Paradise for Two

Between Thanksgiving and Xmas, we managed a week at Turtle Bay, a resort on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii.  Big surf, warm sun, and great hiking through jungle (until coming into a clearing and finding out it's the 15th green!).

But the ocean was the best...  I like this shot in particular...

And from our hotel window...

But the favorite moment was the morning we left...  stopping at Sunset Beach for this bit of paradise...

(click on the panorama for a larger view)

Our happy couple... paradise indeed...

Five Minutes of Fame

https://www.saltlakemagazine.com/sherm-clow-salt-lake-city/

Halloween Followup

Yep, belated, certainly...  But a few pics of scary creatures from Halloween.  A devilette and a Lexian (steampunk gangsta).

And lean, mean, scary machine...

Tower of T's

Well, the warm weather season is finally over (big snow today).  Good timing, since I've managed to wear nearly all my t shirts at least once this summer.  They are now washed, folded, and stacked for the winter, awaiting their next chance to grace my wondrous body.

Seems like t shirts are my collectibles, the souvenirs from all the places I visit, or bands, companies, etc. that I enjoy.  My latest is from Kelso Depot and the Mojave National Preserve.  Can't wait until I travel again and add to the collection.

Sperm Donor Stimulator?

Road Trip Pt. 5--Goin' Home

I left Morton on a Sunday morning hoping to beat the rain.  I headed south to pick up US 36 once again, this time to drive across Missouri.  I made it to Hannibal before a downpour, which squelched any attempt to play tourist in the famous Mississippi city.  So on across Missouri, thankfully US 36 was all 4-lane at this point which made travel in the rain easier.

Not much to see, but I did pass through the home of sliced bread!  Of course the woman at the gas mart had no idea what I was talking about...

Then through St Joseph and into Kansas where the rain finally stopped.  Kinda fun crossing three main rivers (Illinois, Mississippi, and Missouri) in the same day.  Looking for a place to stop for the night, I found this...

So, OK, Marysville and US 36 are part of the pony express trail, but the Surf Motel in the middle of Kansas?  At least it was a nice room for $50...  a good deal.

The next day, I continued on US 36...  and found this building in another small Kansas town.

 Rather unusual architecture.

At some point, I found a way to cut south and hit US 24 that would angle down to I-70 in Western Kansas.  US 24 runs close to my home town back in Illinois, so I thought it would be fun to reunite with the highway.  Very worthwhile, a sort of scenic route until I hit I-70, wherein Western Kansas turned into a million square miles of corn, buzz cut flat for as far as the eye could see.  Way boring!

I-70 took me to Denver, and I decided to just follow it home.  Thankfully traffic was light for the remainder of the trip, and Glenwood Springs canyon was absolutely beautiful in the late morning light.  A long drive that day but I made it home.  Quite the adventure, all in all.  I highly recommend lazy road trips on America's alternative highways.

Road Trip Pt. 4--My Home Town

Can't go back to Illinois without visiting my home town of Roanoke.  I noticed that the population is up to 2000 from the 1500 of my youth.  Bustling!

What was really odd was distances...  we literally walked miles to school in the snow uphill both ways!  But I drove right past stuff this time...  Everything was now so close!  Drove right past my old house where I grew up...

Of course, it's really almost unrecognizable...  the whole left side was a small garage, now it's a major addition.

And the Pinky Winky (yep!) is now reduced to rubble...

I did drive out in the country (all corn!) to visit a couple cousins.  Not many relatives left, so I'm appreciative of whatever family I can maintain contact with.  Cousin Bob, now in his 90's is still on his farm, still driving back and forth to Texas a couple times a year.  Marge and Brent have a fantastic farm, huge acreage, plus turkeys and now pigs...  What an operation!  Plus they are now experimenting with some organic farming. It's great to get first hand info on farming in America these days, and I miss my 40 acres...

John and I had lunch at a small cafe in Roanoke (used to be the Texaco station!).  Met another woman there who turned out to be another cousin!  She and her sister, now living in Utah, are hopefully coming to SLC this fall.  Can't wait...  I've always been family shy, so any links are so appreciated.  Looks like it's time to update the family tree.