Dance wit cho blonde Date (reference Animal House)

It's dark and misty in Iowa AGAIN. I miss Palm Springs! I ventured there over MLK weekend with my High School buddies. It was a great respite from Iowa's gray winter. Day one in paradise was a bit rainy. After that - sunshine baby! That and my girls made all the difference. They shine like the sun too.

It was a small group this year - just four of us were able to make it to CA. But we were mighty! Paula and I arrived first - flying in the last leg together from Dallas. Julia followed from Denver shortly after. We got the rental car and headed to the resort in Indio - a suburb of Palm Springs. On the way we picked up groceries and, you guessed it, liquor! In the small world department, the wine sommelier at the liquor store, Steve, was an old friend of our classmate, Jack Bunce. He also knew our pals Roger, Kirk, and Greg. We stopped up the wine line with a walk down memory lane.

for one thin dime, Steve filled us with wine sips and memories

Then we were on to the resort, through the rain - even a bit of floodwater. Good job Paula for piloting the ship! We reached the resort and got checked in. Our nicely appointed room overlooked the Lazy River.  There were palm trees! In the morning we woke up to a sunny day yall! There was a slight chill in the air but the sun felt good as we roamed the property and got the lay of the land. The amenities included a large pool, a couple hot tubs, game room, movie room and a small store/coffee/beer place. The clubhouse for the golf course reminded me of the Atlantic Golf and Country Club - except for the palm trees and view of the low desert mountains with a dusting of snow.

That afternoon we had a date with dates! On our way to the resort, we had scoped ouShields Date Garden Store, advertising delicious "date shakes". Must have! We stopped on our way to pick up Sally from the airport. I tried several types of dates in the showroom/store. Shields invented blonde and brunette. I purchased the blonde ones. Paula, Julia and I split a delish shake and then we watch the "Must See" video - the words sex and date were involved. It was quite fascinating. The dates were yummy.

 We were thrilled when our pal Sal arrived from snowy Portland, where the two snowplows the city owns didn't bother to run by her house. Luckily her husband Bob got her to the airport. Our girl needed some R&R. We sat in the hot tub that afternoon and were entertained by 86 year old Elsie, who was originally from the Cedar Rapids area. She relocated to Alaska where she raised a family for many years, now living in Seattle. The four of us couldn't really get a word in edgewise about our exciting exotic lives. Interesting (self-centered) lady.

downtown PS

The rest of the weekend was filled with laughter, shopping and serious talk about family, cooking, health and the state of the world. Not in that order. I'm lucky to roll with some good cooks! One night we had grilled swordfish steak tacos and fresh mango salsa. Thanks, Jules! I stuck to clean up duty.

One highlight of the weekend was lunch with our dear friend Robyn's sister Karla, who has lived in PS many years. It was loads of fun to catch up with Karla who reminds me greatly of her momma, Jody Henningsen. We sure missed Robbie Dob, though. She was stuck in Orlando due to work obligations.

Left - Sal, Julia, Paula   Right - me, Karla

Some of my favorite time in Palm Springs was spent walking each morning with Paula. The sun shined and the scenery was beautiful! I could get used to that.

walk view

What a fun vacation! I wasn't ready to go home. The weather, the food, the bevies. No work. My magnificent pals. I brought some blonde dates home. $7.99!

Just Like Family

My sister Betsy is saying goodbye to "Grandma Helen" this week. She is the woman who helped the Kohans raise their family of five children - providing loving grandma-like childcare for a family who doesn't have relatives living nearby. When Betsy and Wayne needed time away, Helen, a friend's mother, would come to stay with the Kohan family.

Kohans - 2000? 

Grandma Helen always sounded to me like Lulubelle, a wonderful woman who helped raise many families Atlantic where I grew up. Her real name was Lulu Herbert, a woman who lost her husband (a Phillips 66 longtime employee if I remember right) at a fairly young age. She started a gig house-sitting, complete with kids and dogs/cats etc. Parents all across town were overjoyed.

One young charge started calling her Lulubelle, and the name stuck! She stayed with the Bullocks many times and she was a Belle of a gal and we loved her like a grandmother. Our grandparents lived in town but retired to sunny Florida each winter - which was often when Mom and Dad wished to travel.

Lulubelle drove a groovy AMC Javelin car. She was an awesome, if messy cook. My sisters and I still reminisce about her fried chicken, homemade noodles and sugar and chocolate chip cookies! She gave me her sugar cookie recipe when I got married. I cherish it!

Sometimes Lulubelle would be "double-dipping" and we'd go with her to another family's house and hang out with those kids, like the Cook family Terri, Sarah and Barb. Now that's a lot of girls! Or the Swishers, which I loved because they had boy toys. Unfortunately, their dog bit Betsy's face when she touched his bad leg. That led to stitches at Dr. Wilcox's office downtown. Betsy bit the nurse who also had to have a tetanus shot. That was an exciting day!

Born in 1900, Lulubelle lived a long life, passing away in 1997 in California where her daughter lived. I don't remember the last time I saw her. I wish I would have paid more attention to her and others who were so important in my young life. I should have visited them when I went back to Atlantic. But like many in their young adulthood - I was all about me. At some point, Lulu moved to California to be near family members, and the chance to see her was lost.

It was when we were about this age that Lulabelle used to stay with us, and after Susi went to college

Family relationships are important, but so too are those who weave their way into our lives, filling important roles such as childcare (with love). Maybe they need us too. They need to be needed. Sometimes those relationships are temporary. Other times they last a lifetime.

Here's to Grandma Helen, loving keeper of the Kohan children and to Lulubelle Herbert, who corraled the Bullock girls and fed them well. Perhaps you have a pretend Aunt or Uncle in your family in your life. Don't lose track and visit them when you can. No regrets!

Apps, First Day Hike

The future is now!

Paul has had a sore lower back lately. I talked him into having his very first massage. He came home raving about the experience and thanked me profusely! No, not really. He seemed underwhelmed. Great! More massage $ for me.

One thing he did say was that the masseuse pushed him to drink more water. It's true. Both of us are bad at hydrating. He said Joan Collins (the masseuse, not the actress) asked him about his "daily intake". He listed off what he drinks - such as coffee, and she said "dehydrater" and wine, "dehydrater". Uh oh. He does have his trusty water glass but apparently doesn't utilize it enough.

I don't do much better. I'm not as much of a coffee hound as Paul Goldsmith. He apparently inherited the gene from his parents who could drink that beverage 24- hours a day without any effects to their ability to sleep. I can wave caffeine under my nose after noon and stare at the clock well past midnight. I take my trusty water bottle to work (I try to avoid drinking Wallace Building water which has been known to be brownish in the morning) and caffeine-free tea at home. But I kinda nurse it - definitely not a chugger. I'm just not that thirsty.

I read recently that there is a personal wearable device that along with everything else it measures, tells the wearer if they are hydrated enough. DRINK! I relayed this story to Paul and we began riffing about what is coming. A wearable that tells us when we are full! "Stop Eating Dammit!" One that sets off an alarm when we have reached .08 alcohol content. I imagine that happens faster that we'd care to admit! I'd like one that fills in the words and name I can't come up with. I always think of them later...#myharddriveskips

Paul and I started out 2017 right! We were asleep. We did go to the Cyclone Men's basketball game the night before. The team came from behind for a victory and we won the postgame celebration with our friends the Ehreckes, Kevin, and Kari, with their daughter Kasee and her honey Tanner. We enjoyed supper at the local Irish joint with them after - a fun night.  New Year's Eve was low-key - just watching football. Shoutout to our future son-in-law, Corey. His Clemson Tigers were dominating in their win over the Big 10 darling Ohio State.

On the first day of 2017, we did something new - Iowa DNR's First Day Hike at Walnut Woods in the flood plain of the Raccoon River on the southwest side of Des Moines. DNR and parks across the country held similar events. The weather was chilly good. I bundled up yet even with the Hot Hands (courtesy of a booth REI had at the event) my fingers got chilly. We hiked with over 100 fellow enthusiasts at the event put on by DNR and Friends of Walnut Woods, a volunteer group that supports park activities. The ranger, Terry Manning, kicked off the event with a few words about the park and the First Day history. He's a bird man who especially loves purple martins. That morning he'd rescued a goose with a broken wing. It was waiting in his truck to go to a rehab center.

Ranger Terry fills us in. Note the free walking sticks! We each got one. 

After a group photo, we were off on a 2.5-mile hike. Paul and I chatted excitedly the whole time about what we are looking forward to. There is one big event coming up of course - Amy and Corey's wedding in Denver in August. We can't wait to see Jud and Kara's new home. We also talked about other vacations to come and hiking, biking and kayaking in Iowa in 2017. We haven't been to the NE part of the state to kayak the Upper Iowa for a few years...and it's gorgeous! (Iowa's little secret) Of course I made my honey stop for a few pics. I didn't make any resolutions to stop doing selfies, sorry, not sorry.

Iowa - a good place to be. Just dress warmly. 

Back at the Walnut Woods Lodge, cocoa, coffee, and breakfast awaited! It was a super way to ring in the New Year.

I'm nervous and excited about the coming year. Stay tuned.