St. Augie with the Gals

YAY! It's "bucket filling" time of year. The time when I get together with my Atown homegirls. This year we picked St. Augustine, Florida - an ancient city on the Atlantic side of the state. We stayed in a lovely VRBO house right on the beach. There were seven of us. Such great light and views!

The town is filled with shopping, history, and restaurants, was located just a few miles away from our beach house. We drove in several times and parking in the main ramp. It was a perfect place. When not touristing, we were happy to hang out at our lovely home and did some touristy stuff:

Went to the visitor's center and an ancient Presbyterian Church and college campus
Attended a shell talk
Had supper at Beachcombers
Visited the Castillo de San Marcos - the oldest masonry fort in the US, and chowed at a great biscuit restaurant
Attended an art gallery and went to lunch

In between, we enjoyed our time at our beachy home! Of course, my gals are good cooks. I am on the cleanup crew!

I enjoy the delicious concoctions they come up with during our vacation. We have so many fabulous discussions about growing up, life at 62, work, retirement, health, fashion and more! We decided we should start a Pod-Cast! haha. When I wake up in the mornings - I do love listening to those girls chat as they start their days. 

I posted a few pics on Facebook and classmate Ted let me know that Roger and Connie were in the area too! So I texted him and we arranged an AHS gathering - impromptu in Florida. How cool is that? It was nice to see Rog and Connie. Small world!

All too soon it was time to leave. That's the sad part. It's such fun being with the girls and we text constantly.  But it's not like being together. Hearts across America!  Peace out to my GF!

Being Present

Have you tried Yoga or other types of exercise that require you to be "present" while you work up a sweat?

Action sports/team sports require more constant participation - so it's easier to pay attention to them. For example, when I learned to play the game of basketball in the 1970's Coach Allen taught us "plays". Mind blown! Who knew that it wasn't just about dribbling and making shots. The pick and roll even worked when players were limited to two dribbles - see articles about Iowa's Six on Six game played in the state until the early 1990s. Okay, as an outfielder in softball I may have had a few non-ball thoughts like, "what should Mona (Jones), Kristi (Davis), and I do tonight after the game?" So many decisions scooping the loops in Kristi's ancient Chevy - shifter on the column. Pizza Hut, Lally's, A&W. 

Fast forward (and it was fast), 46 years. When I attend water exercise three days a week, while I run through the exercises - stretches and aerobic routines, I feel like I have Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). My mind wanders constantly! I am trying to change that.

It's not just while exercising either. Somewhere along the line, I started living less in the moment. 😕I particularly notice this during water classes and when I do yoga. Yoga classes can intimidate - especially when one is 62 years old with bad shoulders. So I work with my personal yogi Adriene from Austin. She's on my personal computer. When my downward dog collapses, she never freaks out.

I am trying to train my mind by fetching it back to the exercise at hand calling (internally) "Here, Here, Here". (I hope I'm not saying it out loud) haha.

Monday I found myself thinking about packing for my next trip (Thursday - Florida with my homegirls, reviewing my week's schedule, thinking about our children, and my funny Valentine - you get it. Distracto!)

So when the lap swimming guy goes by behind me - splashing me every 30 seconds, I must focus on jumping jacks, leapfrog and skiing - to the best of my ability! I need to get my heart rate up and concentrate on resistance to reduce flab. I don't want that underarm flab to paddle me away.

Past Homegirl gathering - 2018 Key West.

Paul with our kids Christmas 2018 - they're all doing fine. 

Even when exercising - Every Moment Matters! Be there! 

Heading South and then North

After visiting our friend Chris Watson, we went south from Scottsdale to visit more people we love who live in Arizona - some permanently and others as snowbirds. My Aunt Jean and Uncle Bruce (affectionately known as Bean and Juice to those of us in the family who follow the Dave Bullock method of using nicknames for all) moved to Green Valley, AZ (GV), south of Tucson sixteen years ago.

Sunny AZ photo with Al and Sharon in their yard

I can't believe it's been that long since they decided to leave the Denver area, their longtime home. They decided the city was getting a bit too big. The city and suburbs population was just over 500,000 in the 1960's - and grew to 1.5 million by 2000. Today, it's close to 3 million! We have many Denver/CO relatives including our baby girl Amy and husband Corey. So we get there a couple times a year. We're sad they aren't around there anymore - but have to admit, at this time of year, their home in GV was sure a warm place to visit.

As a bonus, our longtime Creston friends, Allan and Sharon Higgins are spending a couple months in GV this winter. On our way to Jean and Bruce's, we stopped at their temporary home- a small house with a great view of the mountain range. They showed us around the area and we went to lunch - no Italian this time. I had a great tamale! Fun catching up with Al and Sharon - we've missed them!

Wisdom Cafe with Jean and Bruce

That afternoon, we arrived at Jean and Bruce's home in the Quail Creek, a housing area that has lots of amenities including a golf course and a cool community building where people can do all sorts of things like pottery, woodworking (Paul drooled at the tools), glass, quilting and more. We had not seen Bruce and Jean since Amy and Corey's wedding.

Aunt Jean and her sister Aunt Marty, who lives in Denver. are my dad's sisters. They've always been close relatives - much loved and familiar as they traveled to Atlantic to see my grandparents and us throughout my childhood. And we'd visit Denver. I can't stress enough how important it is to me to spend "quality" time with friends and family, swapping stories and hugs.

On Saturday we drove south to the small artsy, shopping town called Tubac. We dined at the Wisdom Cafe - for the best Mexican Food of our trip. Plus a margarita! It was fun shopping with J&B who even knew some of the vendors in Tubac. That night we dined at their club - something small as we were all still full from lunch. It was a hopping place!

Bruce was very helpful when we planned our route home - introducing Paul to neighbor Jimmy, a Kansas University fan from the western part of that state. Jimmy told Paul about the Fairfield Inn at Tucumcari, NM. Bruce and Jean seem to know all the best stops and roads to take - especially if you're going to Denver.

We stayed in NM that night and made it all the way home on Day 2, beating a storm the was coming into Wichita and Oklahoma City. It was a long drive. Home was a welcome sight! As Dorothy says, "There's no place like home"

Beautiful sunrise leaving Arizona

This store looked cool! I love Neon.

It was Sunday night - so we couldn't get our kicks - on Route 66

West Texas and New Mexico

Connie Goldsmith - around 1975

My husband's sister Connie moved south to Carlsbad, NM right after she finished college to be a lab technician at the hospital. Connie liked horses (something we had in common) and warmer weather. Sadly, breast cancer took her life in 2007, after a long fight. I have always been sad that we never made it to NM to visit her. We had the "busy, kids" excuse and never made it. Since then that area has been on my bucket list - including the Carlsbad Caverns.

On our route there we drove through Texas mining country - there wasn't much else there besides wells and supporting infrastructure. No crops, no livestock. We booked a hotel in a little town called Pecos, where we found a little restaurant with cold beer and good fish tacos. The next morning we drove through Carlsbad to the Caverns National Park. I'm proud to report that I got my Lifetime senior national park pass for $80, which allowed both Paul and me into the cavern.

National Park - near cave opening

Paul's last chance before going in

Water, gas and time have created beautiful formations

Looking for elusive lint

We opted to walk down into the cavern to the bottom. It took about an hour. I was glad we had our hiking boots on and that these newfangled (it's an old folds term) cellphones have flashlights! Both of us are a little freaked out about being underground - so we didn't stay and admire the formations at the bottom once we arrived at the massive cavern.

Near the bottom, we met a crew of around 30 volunteers picking lint off of the stalagmites. They reported that lint damages the formations as it attracts moisture. I wouldn't mind volunteering in a national park someday - above ground! We took the elevator back up - 750 feet! The sun never looked so welcome (until a few days of gray skies back in Iowa).

After the Park visit, we traveled to Las Cruces, New Mexico, which seemed like a nice little city. That night we ate Italian food, of course! The restaurant was right across the street from our motel and was delightful.

Scottsdale with Watson

Driving from Las Cruces to Scottsdale takes about six hours. We were on a mission to meet up with our pal Chris Watson for Old Town drinks and a meal. Paul and I had been there ten years ago when we visited for the ISU bowl game. It's a fun area and on a lovely warm evening, it was fun walking through the neighborhood.

We celebrated an early Happy Birthday to Chris. It was great catching up with her and hanging out. She's such an interesting person. I met Chris at Washington Elementary in Atlantic when she and her family moved in from Strawberry Point. Her dad was one of the many Walnut Grove guys. That company had such a huge impact on Atlantic throughout my childhood. We didn't really pal around through high school, but always got along because she is one of those "nice to everyone" people. Like with Paula, Chris and I reconnected when we all turned 50 and lost our friend, Theresa Faust, pushing the rest of us to get together. We can thank Theresa for our renewed friendship!

Like my mother, I'm an ocean person. That's why I like to go to sunny Florida in the winter. But I must admit Arizona is growing on me. Especially when it wassnowing daily in Iowa.

On to Texas

Statue of MLK on the day honoring him - University of Texas campus

When traveling, we try to visit people we know in the area. And no, it's not (just - haha) about free lodging. Visiting friends and family allows us a chance to have real conversations with them - beyond the usual "how are you?".

The rule is 2 days at the most. More than that can be overstaying one's welcome. Note - in some cases it can be 0 or 1 day - depending on if they are even comfortable hosting visitors. Know your host - don't put them or you in a bad spot. Consider their setup for visitors. Some people enjoy hosting guests - others prefer their guests sleep elsewhere. We have two spare bedrooms and enjoy having guests. But when the kids were still home it wasn't as easy as there was no real guest room. 

Paula's backyard - so lovely compared Iowa's snow

We arrived in Austin, Tex on Saturday afternoon (1/18). It's always fun staying with Paula in Austin. It's my third time. She insisted we stay for three nights - so she was probably ready to wave to us as we drove off armed with better than Google directions (provided by PJB) on getting out of town. 

If you are a longtime blog reader, you know that Paula is one of my Atlantic besties - from age 4 or so. We lost touch in our middlin' years but reconnected in our mature years. When we reconnected we discovered again how much we like each other! Now Paul too has gotten to know her too. She's lived in Austin for many years and has traveled quite a bit, so helpful advising us about the rest of our trip and other future trips.

When we arrived in Austin on Saturday, the three of us went out to an area restaurant. I told her I was up for some music so we then headed to hear some music! For live music, many think of Nashville, New Orleans, and Memphis - but Austin is a huge music city in its own right. The musicians are everywhere as we found out. Paula took us to Central Market - a grocery store that features live music. Picture HyVee with a dancefloor and band. People were shaking a leg to swing. Others like us Groups of people and families sat in the dining area outside the dance floor to listen - a great way for youngsters to experience live tunes!

Wild Basin was so pretty! Austin is hilly. 

Sunday
We hiked the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve - right in the city. Austin has waterfalls! It was a great workout and a beautiful hike.

Then we enjoyed the NFL games - except the Packers had no answer for the Giants. Paula cooked up some great game food - and even dessert! How about those Chiefs? They were my first ever fave football team - Len Dawson, Otis Taylor, Emmit Thomas, Willie Lanier, Bobbie Bell, Jan Stenerud - and later, our Atlantic hometown boy Ed Podolak! Even as a youngster, I always loved watching football. Mom and I watched Monday Night Football together with a bowl of popcorn.

Monday
Paula volunteers at the airport, staffing the Information Booth most weeks, so she knows her way around the joint. I had an appointment at the Austin Airport on 1/20 to interview for Global Entry - a US Customs and Border protection clearance program for low-risk (that's me!) travelers for expedited clearance when traveling, using kiosks. You have to book those appointments months in advance - and Iowa doesn't have the program! I was so fortunate to book that date in Austin on MLK day. Now I'm set for the Bullock sisters May France River cruise. More about that later. The appointment only took 10 minutes once my name was called.

Fountain and tower UT Campus

Later we visited the Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) Library located near the University of Texas campus. It was my first presidential library - very interesting! I was a child during his presidency and only remember him peripherally - on black and white TV, during Viet Nam war clips. What an unsettling time in the US. I had no idea how much he influenced civil rights after the southern-born man spent years as a "separate but equal" believer. Later he changed his views to understand that integration was necessary. The library gave me a glimpse into the era and the man.

Paula and I are posing with Motown costumes - karaoke here we come! 

As a bonus, the LBJ Library was hosting a Motown Exhibit - featuring fabulous costumes and music from "back in the day". Were people really that little? I'm so glad activities guide Paula suggested the museum. From there we walked through the University of Texas (UT) campus and the surrounding area in search of good barbecue! Paul's fave brisket was yummy! We walked over 5 miles that day - good thing with all the food we had taken in by then. Another bad thing about vacation - overeating!

I had chicken - so delish! 

If you've never been to Austin, you should check it out. You can do the trip - Oklahoma City to Fort Worth to Waco to Austin. You can even continue to San Antonio! This great country has so many fab places to visit. Just check out the web before going to plan your visit. So much to do and see.

Next - on to western Texas and New Mexico.

Going Walkabout - what I did on my vacation

When I decided to retire smack in the middle of Iowa winter, I knew that date wasn't ideal for basking in my home state during my new found idle time. So Paul and I began plotting our escape (mostly Paul). He planned while I finished up my last few weeks of work. As we put together our itinerary, we tried to emulate our daughter-in-law Kara, trip planner supreme to figure out where we'd go, hotels (or friends to visit), what, and even food ideas!

We were going Walkabout (from the dictionary: a journey on foot undertaken by an Australian Aboriginal in order to live in the traditional manner.
Sure we drove, and we are not Australian Aboriginals - but you get the idea. When you drive places, you get a better idea of how people live in the places you visit.

Our trip was planned for places south - from January 16 to around January 29. After travel scares (highway 360, unplanned overnights), in early adulthood, Paul always keeps a close eye on is the weather. We are not those who plunge into icy snowy conditions unprepared. In fact, we don't plunge at all! We are Scout travelers who utilize today's technology to plan ahead. Now retired, we have the luxury of flexibility - yippy!

Our windshield crack - it grew during our trip! 

We left a day early to beat the snow, rain, ice that hit Iowa on Thursday. We noted the stuff never left Des Moines while we were gone. Good move! Just south of Kansas City, some jerk who had the nerve to drive in front of us kicked up a tiny missile that cracked our windshield. Ugh!

The first stop was Wichita. We decided later that we could have made it to Oklahoma City, but now we've seen Wichita. That night we checked out a local place - Bite Me Barbecue, downtown. The place got an A for atmosphere, but the food was not fabulous. But hey, the beer was cold!

Downtown art - OKC

On to Oklahoma City (OKC) on Thursday the 16th - a mere 2.5 hours south. I started booking all our motels on Hotels.com. Once I got everything set up on the mobile app, it was pretty simple. Plus after 10 stays, you get a free stay. We're up to 7 after that trip! We didn't book most until the day we arrived for the night before - most billed the card upon booking. I did notice that we didn't get the primo room assignments - welcome to the room by the elevator/ice maker.

Oklahoma City National Monument

We really enjoyed OKC  - despite some soggy weather, staying at the Hilton Garden Inn in Brick Town 2 nights. After we arrived we walked to the Oklahoma City National Monument, which honors all affected by the bombing of the federal building on April 19, 1995. It is so informative and well-done - showing with such pride how well the people of this city stepped up to meet the terrible crisis head-on. Just like 9/11, the country rushed in to help and to hold those who needed holding in their arms. There are videos, interactive displays, information about victims and perpetrators and evidence on how they built the case against them. It was cold and a bit rainy so we didn't get to spend as much time out in the actual site of the former federal building - it was beautiful.

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum

On day two we visited the Jim Thorpe Museum and Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame in the morning - just around the corner from our motel. It was free (donation) and we spent over an hour there. We now realize we need to get to the Iowa Sports Hall of Fame soon.

That afternoon we took an Uber to the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. It was very cool and is in the process of adding an outdoor interactive area that is sure to draw a younger crowd. If you are a fan of movie westerns, native American art, western art, settlers, Native Americans history, and more - this is for you. We spent several hours there and could have spent more, but our brains were bursting and we were hungry. It was interesting talking with Uber drivers about the economy and their stories of what the area was like. The hotel had a nice bar/restaurant. We sat at the bar one night and had a nice conversation with a woman from Stillwater. It's interesting to hear what life is like in Oklahoma.

That night we took in an OKC Thunder pro basketball game - two ISU basketball players are on that team though one is injured. Deonte Burton didn't score but played. It was fun, though pro hoops will never replace college ball in my viewpoint. The Bricktown area has a riverwalk - filled with cool eateries. Due to the rainy weather, we didn't get to investigate the riverwalk area, but it looks like fun!

Then we were off to Austin, Texas on Saturday. It's amazing how from the Texas border on, it seems to be a continuous city. We had no idea that Waco is on the road to Fort Worth. We drove smack through the Baylor campus and pictured the MacLane Stadium (where Baylor plays) featuring shiplap.

There are no toll roads in Iowa. Kansas does - and they make sense to me, you get a ticket when you enter and pay at the end. Hmmm. Not in Texas! We followed Google around/through Austin and ended up on a fancy road where fancy cameras took our car's picture. I suppose we'll get a bill from the Great Republic soon so I'm looking forward to that. Not. It did take us very nicely to our friend Paula Bacon's house.

Did I mention the weather? By then, it was over 60 degrees and sunny. The sun followed us the rest of our trip until just north of Wichita on the day we returned. In the meantime, Iowa was getting hit with white stuff over and over.

Austin is a wonderful place. That blog is up next!

Leslie Goldsmith - Retired

It's my first real day of retirement. What day is it again? Haha, just kidding. It will take me at least a week before I get confused about what day it is.

Yesterday was my last day as a Department Natural Resources employee. I've quit jobs before. It's always hard as I'm bad at transitions. I get tucked into my work, even when it's not the best fit for me. I like the people and the routine. In this case - the job was a great fit. It was a job made for me.

I turned in my state ID - photo taken 11 years ago. I took down all my cubicle decorations. Amy Wilken has decided to move 1 door down into my space. It's a good one - once used by Jim Bodensteiner - such a great guy.

Okay, there may have been a bit too much on the bureaucracy stuff. I preferred the helpful side, meeting with stakeholders - instead of the get fifteen signatures for a document thing. My favorite part of the job was meeting people around the state of Iowa.

My co-workers took me to lunch yesterday at the Continental - one of my long-time favorites. It's been around since before my time working in DSM - 11 years. The blackened chicken sandwich is delish! Back when I still worked in Creston there weren't very many restaurants in the East Village - now there are lots! My co-workers gave me a gift card for one of them. And I got a nice plaque from the State of Iowa - to commemorate my service. That's nice after 11 years in Creston and 11 years here. It was pointed out that the back might be used as a cutting board - haha.

I cut out after lunch - not much on goodbyes. Meanwhile...back at the ranch, Paul was slaving away on food for the retirement partay! Good thing tailgating has prepared us for just such events. He made 36 Hawaiian roll sandwiches - turkey, ham, roast beef with cheese. I had made a spicy snack mix on Sunday. Add chips, a veggie platter, and hummus. Don't forget the delicious Every Thing Bundt Cake - red velvet. We were ready to take over Peace Tree Brewing in the East Village.

We got there about 3:30 PM and started setting up. Every Thursday retired federal employees have "Team Building" at some DSM establishment. They showed up right on time. Then others started trickling in. It was kind of like getting married - my worlds collided. The feds, our Creston homies plus the Roses - transplanted DSM Crestonites, tailgating friends, my college roomie Jane her sis Susan and buddy Barb, our niece Barb, Joan - who I lived with part-time for 4 years when I first started working in DSM, and the DNR co-workers. It was a grand group - all to celebrate the end of something. And the beginning!

It's exciting! The next five months are set with some cool trips. And eventually, I plan to get a part time gig to earn some money somehow. I'll worry about that later.