David and I arrived in Bismark at 11:30 local time, yesterday.  David was THRILLED to see all the snow.  He could barely wait to get our bags from baggage claim before he bolted out the door to form a snowball.  I wonder how long  before all the novelty of the white stuff wears off? 

We got our rental car and headed off to Mott.  I’ve never driven around Bismarck or out to Mott.  I’ve always been chauffered.  The rental agent had a great street map of Bismarck that I plan on keeping…I will need it to find my way around once our move is complete.

We managed to get to the highway and head west toward Dickinson.  As we drove over the Missouri river, I pointed it out to David and also pointed out all the sandbags along the shore.  Bismarck was experiencing flooding from the Missouri, at the same time Fargo was making the news with the Red River flooding.

We found the turn off for Mott just fine and even got to see the mayor running the snow plow from the bit of snow that dropped earlier in the day.  David was shocked to see the snow drifts and were up to the roof line of his Uncle’s house.  He was polite enough to come in the house and say “hi” when we arrived and then he bolted for the snow.

David played in the snow for several hours while we waited for Daddy to come home from work.  Then we had to check out the house he rented for us.  OK, that “house” (former office building) is a different kind of house…but will do the trick for the hopefully short amount of time we will have to spend in it.  The mayor, whom we are renting from, just uses it to rent to hunters in the fall. It has enough bunk beds to 10 hunters.  Man it would crowded as a subway train with 10 hunters in it, but considering they are really only using it to sleep and eat, it’ll do.

Today, the men-folk plan on getting the snow mobiles running and taking David out for a real thrill!  Should be fun, I will post pics when it happens.

So long, for now, from snow country.

David is NOT ready for the snow in North Dakota.  He’s fine for snow in Las Vegas, but not North Dakota.  We made a quick trip to Sports Chalet!  The plus side of having to buy North Dakota Winter gear, here in Vegas, in Spring…is that the winter gear is on clearance!  $180 Columbia Snow Boots were $49.99!  A$200 Billabong “snowboarding” jacket, in men’s medium, was $70.  They did not have ski/winter gloves, hats, or scarves on sale.  Not sure why…but considering the savings on the boots and jacket, I figured I could pay full price.

Sport Chalet didn’t have much left in terms of kids jackets.  Which worked out really well.  This way David’s new winter coat is a little bigger and hopefully he will still be able to wear it when our first winter in North Dakota rolls back around.  Now I just have to figure out the logistics of only having two carry ones that fit in the overhead, and also fit our coats, hats, scarves, and gloves.  It’s really not far from the gate to baggage claim…I think I could do what I saw other people doing and that was throw the coat just inside the checked bag and pull it out before you head outside.

We are in Oregon. The GORGEOUS Oregon Coast to be very specific. Many landscape photographers call the Oregon Coastline the most beautiful in all of the country…I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone to disagree with you!

It really is stunning. And to think we, David, Gigi, Rochell and I, get to escape the Vegas heat and humidity and get to hang out in a Cape Cod style cottage, with a gorgeous front porch decorated in a nautical theme with tons of containers with all types of flowers, fruits and vegetables. Then there are the swings! Several swinging benches, which are perfect for enjoying the glorious Coos Bay weather…70 degrees with a light breeze, all the while just the faintest hint of ocean on the breeze. Yep, this vacationing is HARD work.

Yesterday I sat on a swing outside, all day, reading the latest Stephanie Meyer book, “Breaking Dawn”. That was it! Swing and read, all day long!!! Yep…it’s hard work vacationing at my sister’s house! LOL!

We, Rochell, Gigi, David, and I, left Vegas Thursday morning and arrived at Lynnea’s on Friday afternoon. Lynnea loved having Gigi again and the addition of Rochell was even greater in her and Wally’s estimation. Lynnea and Wally are such loving, giving people to begin with, as are Gigi and Rochell…so there was a lot of love flowin from the time we walked in the door, wine too for that matter! LOL

Saturday, Lynn figured she would give Gigi, Mom and I the $5 tour…we left Wally and David home to entertain themselves with the PlayStation. Lynn took us to just a handful of the most beautiful spots in Coos Bay and Charleston, then we had a lovely seafood lunch, then we hit a few gift shops. One of our stops was the gardens of the Simpson House. Mr Simpson did a lot for Coos Bay and built a beautiful house and gardens for his wife. When he died, he deeded the house over to the County as a park…and his Japanese Zen Garden is my favorite. I had to try and get a few portraits while I was there and am pleased with the results…they are in this post.

Sunday, Mom and Gigi left to spend some time with other friends and family they have here in Oregon…but they will be back by the weekend so we can hang out at the seafood festival in Charleston on Saturday and we will start the drive home on Sunday.

Kenny…this post was for you. Be forewarned that I may or may not post again until I get home…so no bitching to Brian!!!

Yep, the last time I was in Montana was 1976. The year my Dad took Mom, Porter and I to Carrington, ND (his Hometown). On the way to Carrington we had gone through Vegas, Salt Lake, Cheyenne WY, various sites in South Dakota before continuing on into ND.

Here was the deal with my Dad…he did ALL the driving on any of our trips. Since he did all the driving we were subject to his timetable. We stopped for the day when he was tired, could have been 2pm, could have been 10pm. We also stopped when he was hungry or when he had to use the restroom…granted, he wasn’t an ogre, he asked for our input, but since he was driving I can understand doing everything according to how he felt.

Having said all this…the plan for the drive home from North Dakota was to go into Montana and down through Yellowstone National Park…much like Brian and I plan to do with David tomorrow.

Back in 1976, we were driving in my Mom’s, newly purchased for this roadtrip, Chrysler New Yorker. Down we go on Highway 94 west through North Dakota and into Montana. Once we got into Montana, Dad started feeling really tired…I mean really tired, so tired in fact that he was willing to relent and let my Mom drive. So we pulled off the highway, Porter (six) and I (eight) were put onto the front bench seat and buckled in, Mom took her position behind the wheel, and Dad stretched out in the back seat. Dad, being a typical “back seat” driver, had to admonish Mom, “Betty, just stay here on the 94, we have a full tank of gas, there should be no reason to stop before Billings. When you are coming up on Billings, wake me up”…and off he drifted into a slightly fitful slumber.

There are Porter and I, in the front seat, chattering along with our poor Mom who HATED to drive on freeways…HATED as in a slight phobia, I think. I feel for her in retrospect, she had no sense of direction whatsoever and to have to drive without that is pretty tough…ya get lost easily and I think that was always her fear. Anyway, back to our story….Porter if you are reading this, you know what comes next. (This has been one of those favorite, oft repeated, family stories since it happened)

As we are driving through beautiful Montana we come upon an area where the department of transportation is doing some repair work, some rather noisy repair work. Think jackhammers and vehicle back-up beeping! Mom wasn’t concerned, she was just moving over to the left lane as requested, when all of a sudden, Porter puts both hands over his ears and yells, “OH NO!”. This sends my slumbering father, immediately upright, and wide-eyed assuming we are in mid-air having just driving off a cliff! Much to everyone’s dismay, Porter continues to scream at the top of his voice with hands still over his ears, “THEY ARE GOING TO WAKE UP DAD!”. Too late little brother, you have succeeded in doing that all on your own!

Needless to say, Dad was no longer tired and as soon as Mom could, she moved off the highway and Dad continued driving…with a slightly faster heart rate.

Way back in 1976, my Dad packed up Mom, Porter and I and hauled us off to North Dakota for a summer vacation. I had so much fun on that trip and remember it quite fondly. I also remember all of Dad’s stories of growing up in a small town. In 1976 I thought Carrington, ND was the place to be! I always thought that “small town” living would be the ultimate!!! I’d forgotten how neat I thought that idea was.

In 1989 I met Brian who was a transplanted North Dakotan. At that time he had no interest, whatsoever, in ever returning to ND…not even just to visit. But then he found his brother.

Being in Mott for the last two weeks has definitely reminded me of what I loved about small town living all those years ago. There is something to be said for everyone knowing one another…yes, everyone knows each other’s business, but you are much more inclined to look out for someone you know than a complete stranger! I’ve never known what it was like to not lock your front door at night. I’ve never seen people run into the grocery store and leave their car running with the doors unlocked. I’ve never driven public streets and had complete strangers wave and smile at me. There is definitely something to be said for small town living.

Then there is the effect it has had on David. He’s been outside just about all day every day…not something I feel comfortable with in Vegas…too many cars racing down the streets. He’s also got lots of opportunities in ND that aren’t an option in Vegas…like learning to ride a motorcycle and learning to ride and care for horses. The streets are so quiet, David and his Uncle went for a 2 hour dirt bike ride last night…each had their own dirt bike and David had the time of his life.

Another huge plus would be an opportunity to pull some of the equity out of our house and bank it towards retirement…something we have not considered since I was laid off. Lots of things to think about and consider…Bri wants to plan a trip to Seattle to research that avenue as well.

Ultimately, I’ve told Bri I will be happy where ever he would be happy. I suspect the pull of being by his brother will be strong and that is good, they have lots to catch up on and experience together.

So, good-bye for now, from Mott, North Dakota. population 900+, Hettinger County Seat.

Yesterday, Saturday, was spent on the road.  Since it was the only Saturday we planned to be here and Michele and Kenny were both off work, there was much to do and see.

The town of Taylor had their annual “Horsefest”.  Friday night there was a fair and horse auction which we did not go to.  Saturday morning there was a horse parade down main street.  It was fun.  It only lasted for about a half hour/45 minutes, but it was fun to see nonetheless. One of the highlights was this wagon pulled by gorgeous Percheron horses, one of my personal favorites, but in the back of the wagon was a group of people that were celebrating their 50th HIgh School Reunion…There were about 25 classmates.  One thing that I didn’t catch was how many were in the graduating class.  I don’t think it was that many because this was a really small town.

After the parade we didn’t hang around for the fair, we decided to head into Dickinson to have some breakfast.  After breakfast we went West because Kenny and Michele wanted to show us Medora.

Medora has a fascinating history.  It was basically founded because a Marquessa found she liked to hunt in there and as a result built a hunting “cabin” that was two stories and had about 20 rooms!

Chateau de Mores was built by a French Marquis who married the daughter of German aristocrats born in New York.  After building the Chateau for his wife, who was fond of hunting, the wife, Medora, arranged for a church to be built and a house for her parents.  Those that worked at the lodge/chateau stayed year round and eventually established the town.  Most of the original residents were French citizens that came over with Marquis and ended up staying.  The town was eventually named in the Marquessa’s honor, Medora.

We tour the chateau which was fascinating and we also toured the town which is kind of an old western version of Solveing outside of Santa Barbara, CA.  I purchased lots of souvenirs for myself and Kailee-pooh, and just enjoyed wandering around the town.

One of the things Kenny and Michele couldn’t wait to show us was the cemetary.  It had some odd headstones.  I’m including one of the odder ones below.

My favorite was one about a guy who died when the bank fell on him!  Too funny!  I might have to start a collection of “odd” gravestone pictures.

Driving home was a challenge.  It was pitch black outside and there is the constant fear of animals on the road.  We did end up hitting an owl in flight…I don’t think we damaged him much if any…by the time we saw him and slammed on the brakes, he was mostly out of our way.  We did pass about 7 deer on the road…by that I mean we saw them, and they us, in plenty of time to avoid a collision.

Finally, today, David graduated from the moped to the mini dirt bike.  He’d been looking forward to riding the motorcycle but the whole gear thing was a bit intimidating.  This bike has a clutchless system.  This after a huge thunderstorm last night…so everything was wet, probably not the best ground to learn to ride a motorcycle on.  That being said, the guys decided to try and cut wet hay, not easily done, and ended up getting one of the tractors stuck in a ditch.  They have been trying to get it out for about 2 hours now and are just now pulling into the driveway.  Weather is a never-ending challenge around here.

Dr. P wants Pop to have another, maintenance, round of chemo.  He had his last round in February and Dr. P is concerned with the aggressive nature of Pop’s Lymphoma.  Dr. P did say Pop is a candidate for transplant.  But the soonest we can get in to see the transplant doc is May 27th…which actually works out well.  Over the next 4 weeks Pop needs to do the round chemo, have a lung function test, and we need to gather hard copies of all his latest tests and scans.

Then at the end of May we see Dr. Y who is the “transplanter”.  He will go over all of Pop’s results and determine is he is a good candidate for transplant.  Dr. P thought the only thing that could possibly kill his chance for transplant is the lung function test and his emphasema…but he doubted it.  If all is a go, Dr Y will will admit him to the hospital for the work up and harvest of the stem cells.  Once he has the amount he needs, he transplants them.  Pop would have to stay hospitalized until all his blood counts returned to normal levels.  Then they may need to stick around a while until Pop has regained enough strength and was ready to go home.

Overall it was a great appointment!  I keep telling the folks all will be just fine and I sincerely believe it will be.  I did ask Dr. P what would happen if Pop was deemed an unacceptable transplant risk.  Dr P said we would just wait and watch for the lymphoma to return…it may never return or it may, we would just watch and see and treat accordingly.

We drove down from Vegas yesterday.  It was a nice almost uneventful drive.  When we got to Kingman, yesterday, I pulled in to a gas station to top off the tank.  Once I shut off the engine, Rochell went in to pay for the gas and I started pumping.  While the tank filled a guy, presumably a gas station employee, showed up and offered to clean the windshield.  I noticed that Pop was mumbling about something and it turned out he was talking to this guy.

The windshield guy mentioned he saw an issue with the tires of the car.  Pop said I should let this guy put the car up on the rack and see what he was talking about.  So I follow him next door to the conveniently located tire shop.  Up, into the air, goes the car and this guy proceeds to show Rochell and I where the rubber is separating from steel belt, or something like that.

Rochell and I don’t see anything out of the ordinary, nor does Pop.  He’s trying to sell us four $139 tires.  We decide he was full of shit, and that it was the end of the month and he was trying to make quota on tire sales. THEN he decides to try selling a $99 tire.  THEN he tried the guilt trip route…”You can’t put a price on safety”, blah, blah, blah.  As soon as we backed out of the garage, Tire Guy was on his way back over to the gas station to try his sales technique on someone else.

I have to admit, when we pulled out, the seed of doubt about the safety of the tires had been planted and I thought about it for most of the drive.

Fast forward to the 10 o’clock news here in Tucson and their leading story is about tires aged over 6 years and how the composition of the rubber changes over time and especially in hot climates.  Catastrophic damage can be caused by rubber separating from the belt while driving.  Guess how old Rochell and Pop’s tires are…5.5years.

Now I’m wondering if the Universe is telling me something???  More to follow later.

I’m off to shower and nap until my seminar starts at 5pm.  I hope the drive home on Sunday is as uneventful as the ride here.  Wish me luck.

Way back in August of last year, I found out that one of my favorite photographers was hosting a workshop.  It’s just a weekend thing…starting Friday evening and ending on Sunday at noon.  This will be a new experience for me.  I’ve never attended a this kind of workshop…let alone by myself and out of state.  On the positive side…I’ve traveled a lot for business and long ago shed any fears I may have had about traveling alone.

I was the first to sign up for the workshop and later discovered this is the last year that this photographer will be doing these workshops…so I’m really pleased I have the opportunity to meet her and learn from her in Cali rather than on the East coast, where she lives.

I’m really looking forward to the beautiful location as well as the opportunity to shoot some professional models…all in an effort to get more experience and knowledge under my belt.  Yet another chance to charge my creative batteries.