Moscow Trip - 2, Halloween!!

Kaleb was given the task of coming up with a costume from stuff around the house, and he wanted to be a mummy, so we put our heads together and came up with this. I cut a paper towel roll into 1/4ths, and Nanna and I wrapped him up, securing it strategically with clear duct tape.

Jennifer added the finishing make-up touches, and he was ready to go. It took quite a while to get him all wrapped up, but he was patient. (When all was said and done, it took almost as long to cut it off him as it did to put it on.)

Claire went as a princess... not really a stretch for her, right?!

The finished products are below. We decided to lose Kaleb's "hat" and go with flour in the hair instead. It was raining, so we went Trick-or-Treating at the mall, with what seemed like half the kids in two counties. All the stores were participating, and it was lots of fun. They both got lots of comments; Kaleb kept hearing how cool his costume was, and Claire got plenty of, "Ahhh...Ohhh... how cute," as you might expect. :-) Trick-or-Treating at the mall is really quite an effecient endeavor... more candy for steps taken than any neighborhood I've ever been in.

Here's a little clip of Kaleb getting his makeup done. Be sure and note Claire's two reactions at the end.

Hope you had a Happy Halloween!!

October in Moscow - 1

Flying to Spokane on Wednesday afternoon we could see a little color in the forest and we talked about how nice it would be to go and see the fall colors in Vermont some day. I joked that by the time we had both the time and $$ to take that trip, global warming would have advanced so far that the trees in the Northeast would just turn brown. :-) We arrived in Spokane and drove south to Moscow well after dark. When we and the sun rose this morning, oh my... what a sight awaited us. Who needs Vermont... Moscow, Idaho will do just fine!!

Trees in Jen and Fok's front yard.

Kaleb in one of those trees.

Back yard from the upper deck.

When we arrived Thursday evening, they were eating a late dinner. We were confident that Kaleb would be glad to see us, and he was, welcoming us with running and jumping hugs. He's becoming such a great kid!! We were, however, a little apprehensive that Claire might not warm up to us as quickly since she doesn't really know us. We had nothing to worry about on that front. She welcomed us with smiles and giggles all around.

Claire and Pappa share a little joke.

Claire enjoying her supper.

Yosemite Re-Mix

One last post of Yosemite pics from last weekend's trip. I love this shot through the valley. With the clouds and the way the light is hitting Half Dome, it looks almost like it's made of ice instead of granite.

There wasn't much water to be found in the valley, but I'm glad this water was there... cool reflection, eh!?!

Half Done shrouded in mystery... well, at least gray skies.


Ron, Tresa and VJ in front of the Ahwahnee Hotel. It's quite the exclusive place to stay with both an interesting history and architecture. Click here for the story. One tidbit is that all that looks like redwood on the outside is actually concrete molded and stained to look like wood. This was done to protect the building from fire, the bane of other structures in the valley.

"Scary Monsters" YOUth Rally

This weekend the Martinez church hosts the annual Scary Monsters YOUth Rally. It's a really good event for our youth group to be part of, and it's one of the few "big event" youth rallies still going. Ray Lawson and his team of volunteers do a great job each year.

A drama group from Cascade College called Second Story comes each year, and Won By One from Pepperdine also comes each year. The cool thing is that they stay with us, so we get to stay at least a little connected by having them here. They are totally comfortable being here, and they are great kids... really good promos for Pepperdine!

This morning VJ fixed pancakes and bacon, and we have more snack food at the house than we usually do, so it's already been a great weekend. We'll go hear them sing tonight at the youth rally, and we may get a private preview of some of their other new songs. Also, they're gracious enough to sing on praise team at church on Sunday, so our church is blessed as well.

I'll close with another Yosemite pic. The guy on the right is our friend, Ron, and I think this spot is perhaps the most picturesque of any we saw last weekend.

Places to See... and Appreciate

We lived for almost 20 years in Arkansas, including college, and we learned to love a lot of things about it. It is, after all, "the natural state," complete with lots of trees and lakes and hills and unspoiled places. We did some camping in the years we lived there, and in the fall the leaves in some parts of the state can be truly beautiful. While we never learned to really enjoy the summer heat, for a couple of kids raised in a one-season climate in Oxnard, we did learn to appreciate the seasons, especially the fall. The schools in Cabot were great to work for and good for our kids. However, the best part of living there was the friends and family (my mom) we still have there.

Houston also had a major plus or two, not the least of which was all the conveniences of the big city... except the traffic of course. Didn't have to worry much about cold weather, in fact warm air and gulf humidity were almost a year-round experience... good for the skin... bad for sinus infections. Again, the relationships are really what make those almost 14 years soooo special.

In our almost five years here in the Bay Area we are also growing meaningful relationships. As God blesses us again in that way, we are also blessed to live in one of the most picturesque areas in the entire world.

In less than an hour we can be in SF where we can warm up in the winter or cool down in the summer.

The state capitol, Sacramento is only a little over an hour away... some interesting history.

Within about a 90 minute drive we can be in the Monterrey area....

or Muir Woods...

or the Napa and Sonoma wine region.

In about 3 or 3 1/2 hours we can be in the Sierras at Lake

Tahoe...

or even at Yosemite.

... speaking of which, I'll post a few more pics later.

And there is even more. God sure did some special creative work here in NoCal. Come and enjoy it!!

Progress?

I was looking through a Reader's Digest today and came across this submission by Beverly Taylor of Colorado Springs.

When he received a journal as a gift, my eight-year-old son was mystified. "Mom, what am I supposed to do with this? The pages are blank."

"You write down interesting stuff that happens to you," I said.

"So, it's like a blog... on paper."

I love progress!

More Yosemite shots...

Nice vista shot from Mirror Lake area... actually "mirror meadow" most of the year since they quit dredging it in the early 70's.

The shot below is a natural spring that runs near one of the hiking trails year round...

providing water for critters...

and sufficient moisture for these ferns just down the hill.

One of the amazing things to me is all the vegetation that grows seemingly right out of the rocks. The granite walls of the valley are dotted with trees and bushes, whose seeds were likely deposited in cracks by birds or wind or water. What amazes me is that they can take root and grow when I sometimes have difficulty growing stuff in my garden! Here is a tree just above a hiking trail growing right out of a crack in the rocks. One of many!

Quote and Pics

My mom shared this Thomas Jefferson quote with me. I thought it both timely and worth passing on:

'I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.' - Thomas Jefferson 1802

Now that I've reminded you of the current economic hard times, let me share some pics to remind you that the One who created it all is still in charge.

These first two shots are from a short hike we did in the morning after we arrived.

The next one just shows how dry the river and streams are in the valley right now.

When I saw the tree below I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't plastic or one of those cell towers made to look like a tree. It just looked too perfect.

And, finally for this post, a shot of the chapel, the last of the really old buildings still standing. It is home to two active churches, offering both Catholic and generic Protestant services every Sunday. Hmmm... wonder if they need a minister... :-)

Yosemite Trip

It's been difficult for folks we know in these parts to imagine how it is that Virginia had never been to Yosemite and I had not been since once in my youth. Well, Ron and Tresa decided to remedy that. Saturday morning they picked us up a little after 6:00, and we spent a wonderful (if long) day travelling to and visiting one of the most magnificent places on earth.

Upon arriving at the valley, we hiked some, drove around some, and took lots of pics. I'll share a few of them over the next couple of days. It was a great day, and we will go back. :-)

It's the fall of a very dry year, so the water falls had little to no water. Bridal Veil Falls above was only a trickle but still beautiful.

It was cloudy and cool, especially early in the day.

An early morning shot of half dome.

Over near the chapel we found this sugar maple in full color.

Oh my... more to come!!

Completing God's Circle

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. (1 John 4:7-12)

As many times as I have read and meditated on this wonderful passage written so many years ago by John the Apostle, as much as I've been encouraged to try to love as God does, as rich as the imagery of God's love is portrayed here, I missed one significant nuance until I was getting ready for our small group this week. It's so obvious... so simple... yet I missed it. Do you see it? God has chosen to allow his all-sufficient love to remain incomplete until we complete the circle by loving one another as He as loved us. Wow!

With all the political attacks, serious stuff, and absolutely ridiculous stuff being said, I thought it was time for a "lighter side of politics" post. Here are some quotes courtesy of the latest issue of Reader's Digest.

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies. - Groucho Marx

Ninety percent of the politicians give the other ten percent a bad name - Henry Kissinger

To lodge all power in one party and keep it there is to insure bad government. - Mark Twain

Do you ever get the feeling that the only reason we have elections is to find out if the polls were right? - Robert Orben

Washington, D.C., is to lying what Wisconsin is to cheese. - Dennis Miller

I'm older than dirt, I've got more scars than Frankenstein, but I've learned a few things along he way. - John McCain

Everybody knows politics is a contact sport. - Barack Obama

And finally...

An election is coming. Universal peace is declared, and the foxes have a sincere interest in prolonging the lives of the poultry. - George Eliot

Quotes

Wonder if these quotes find any traction in our current milieu of politics and the economy?

Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. - Helen Keller

The New Frontier of which I speak is not a set of promises.. it is a set of challenges. It sums up not what I intend to offer the American people, but what I intend to ask of them. - John F. Kennedy

Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. - Jesus

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. - Jesus

According to the quotations page, Richard Feynman US educator & physicist (1918 - 1988) once said, "There are 10^11 stars in the galaxy. That used to be a huge number. But it's only a hundred billion. It's less than the national deficit! We used to call them astronomical numbers. Now we should call them economical numbers."

Wonder what he would say now?!?

Walk by the River

Virginia had planned to walk with a co-worker during their lunch, but the co-worker went home sick. So, she called me just before noon, inviting me to join her and grab a bite to eat. Wednesday nights are often rushed, so we sometimes grab lunch together instead of supper.

We walked from the PD down by the river through the Dow Wetlands restored area. At the turn around point I took this pic with my phone. Not too bad for a phone. If you look closely you can see the Antioch bridge just at the horizon.

After the swing down by the riverside we walked through downtown to a little organic sandwich shop called Nature's Bounty... good food and not too pricey. Even got VJ back to work on time. it was beautiful today... good day for a walk and lunch with a beautiful lady.

First Storm?

We had our first storm of the season last night. Now, when I say "storm" I in now way mean what we used to experience in Arkansas or Houston. Do not think hurricane or tornadoes or lightening or the kind of rain that causes you to pull over while driving. Now, a "storm" here can have wind and a lot of rain associated with it, but that's usually those strong winter storms. This one was more like a moderate low pressure trailing a weak front that moved through pretty quickly. Whatever rain happened here in Antioch was an overnight event, and I never new it. For sure, water had run out of the house downspouts and the dirt on my car was rearranged, but I don't think we got much. Oakland got about .75 of an inch, but Concord, just over the hills from us, got only a tenth.

The upside is that today was crisp and cool and beautiful, although still a little cloudy off and on. The 21st annual Walk for Hunger was this morning, so it was about perfect for that.

It was our first rain since early March, and last winter we didn't get enough rain, so we're in sort of a drought... I believe the worst since 1992... so a rain this early is nice, and maybe it dropped some early snow in the Sierras. I just hope this is only the first of many. A wetter winter would be nice.