SUMMER VACATION 2009
The long awaited Normand "Wild West Trip" is in the record books...The kids and I left May 31, returned July 2, Five+ weeks, 8,600+ miles driven through 16 states!!!...up to Oklahoma, then along I40 and Rt 66, through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona. Saw Meteor Crater and took lots of side trips off the interstates. Spent a couple days in Flagstaff with long and dear Fairhope friends, Karen & Kris Boyer; zipped up to the Grand Canyon for a preview visit, went to beautiful Sedona, AZ, then through Jerome (a neat city on a mountain) on to Nevada. Here, Robin flew in to be with us for 10 days. Las Vegas was a walking exercise, surrounded by a kazillion lights. The kids only wanted to spend their time in the world's largest indoor amusement park-5 acres inside Circus Circus. I won $2 gambling-and it only took $3 to win it, but rest assured we left a lot of our hard earned money there anyway. From sin city, visited Hoover Dam on our way to Williams. There, we boarded the The Grand Canyon Railway for an indescribable, awesome and unforgettable stay at the "big hole in the ground". Next came Glen Canyon Dam and incomparable Lake Powell, which was just too rough for a calm ovenight houseboat stay. Went through Jacob's Lake down to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon-this took us through some unbelievably beautiful but frighteningly deserted areas. Next came Utah and Zion Canyon NP, then up to Salt Lake City. We walked in the Great Salt Lake while we viewed snow covered peaks, toured the world's largest open pit mine, and experienced a fabulous organ recital at the Mormon Tabernacle. Then, Robin flew out to her nursing conference, and the kids and I went to Bonneville Speedway to see how fast the old van would go. We returned to SLC to pick up Robin's brother, Tommy, and headed North on I15. In Idaho, at 8am, we jumped in the 112 degree water at Lava Hot Springs, and discovered how lobsters must feel as they cook. Everytime we crested a hill or went around a curve, it brought more beautiful and panoramic views of our Nation's splendor. Our end destination was to see Danny and Lani Farbstein in Whitefish, MT, just a few miles shy of the Canadian border. (Danny and I met in the Army at Ft. Monmouth, NJ in the fall of 1966. I proposed to Robin at Danny and Lani's Winter Park, CO chalet in 1985). We finally arrived in Whitefish, and quickly realized why so many people talk about how pretty Montana is. We all rode the alpine slides at one of the ski resorts, and played at one of the many lakes in the area. Only a few miles away was Glacier NP, where they were just ready to open the pass for the year. At 8,000+ feet elevation, the kids were playing in snow and throwing snowballs at us...this was June 20, while Robin was reporting 100 degree days in Spanish Fort. I brought my keyboard and played at the restaurant where Danny worked, and I got $80 in tips... so I guess that made the vacation into a business trip... Lani spoiled the kids so much, they didn't want to leave, and we had to keep moving or I probably would have decided to stay in MT. Next came Old Faithful at Yellowstone NP. Elliott left his crocs in a mudpot when he sunk up to his knees in that primordial ooze. Travelling East, through Cody and the Bighorn NF, we got to see Devil's Tower up close. Next came The Crazy Horse Memorial, at 641 feet, the world's largest statue, and Mount Rushmore, a must see for all Americans. Driving across South Dakota, we couldn't pass Wall Drug Store or the Corn Palace. A tornado popped up and chased us out of Mitchell, and sent us to Denver via Nebraska, and I don't remember anything except the 5 hour lightening spectacular, the grass and the bugs. In Colorado, we played for a short time at the world's largest water park until a summer storm closed it. We put Tommy on a plane back home, and the kids and I headed south to Colorado Springs, Focus on the Family headquarters, then to Garden of the Gods and Pike's Peak. First, we went up the Cog Railway, which has been running in some form for over a hundred years. It was 68 degrees at the bottom, and 34 at the top-and sleeting. Walking was difficult at the 14,110 feet summit, I felt like I was having a heart attack. We took the van up the next morning, up the 19 mile road where crazy people race cars, trucks, motorcycles and bicycles next to drop-offs (no guardrails) of thousands of feet. I was the one who had rebuilt the brake system before the trip, so we went very slowly! Heading East through Pueblo took us through Dodge City, KS and a great steak dinner! We stayed at a hotel in Garden City next to the huge cattle yards...it was so "fragrant" that it was difficult to breath! From there, took the back (and by that, I mean desolate, deserted and lonely) 2 lane roads back to Lawton, OK to visit my daughters and grandkids. My first wife, Sylvia, and her husband Bo are the poster people for hospitality. I don't remember the rest of the trip home...I think I was just ready to sleep in my own bed for a change. What a trip....it was Fabulous, Fabulous!!! I recommend everyone to see our beautiful Western states. Where will we go next year????
SUMMER VACATION 2008
Well, I am certainly glad gasoline prices are down and the economy is up…for years, I have been planning a trip out West to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Yellowstone, maybe even going north to Montana to see old friends. In March, I started preparing the Grand Band Van for the trip. Something went haywire, one of the mechanics must have made an error and the steering is kinda scary-so much so that I think twice about driving it up in the mountains. 9 trips to 7 different mechanics only made it slightly better, so I aborted The Normand Wild West trip for this year. Robin is a Nurse Practitioner at the Mobile County Health Department, only gets a short vacation, so we had to improvise.
The kids and I zipped down to Jacksonville to visit sister Laurie, her husband Jon, and niece Dana. www.reddimension.com .We drove on the beach (impossible around here), swam in the Atlantic, ate at an incredibly interesting and fabulous restaurant www.clarksfishcamp.com went to a water park, listened to dueling pianists, visited a bar where all the servers performed along with the patrons, and even went to a couple of yard sales. As if that were not enough, in St. Augustine, we climbed 219 steps to the top of one of the oldest and highest lighthouses in the world http://www.staugustinelighthouse.com After a couple of hours, when I regained my breath, I climbed down to find out the kids had already gone up and down several times. So we toured the old fort http://www.nps.gov/casa/ and did the tourist thing at the shops. It was very instructional too, we discovered that ice cream cones have a very, very short life in 95+ degree sunlight. Returning to Jax, went up the coast road and finally saw Sawgrass resort http://www.sawgrassmarriott.com/ where my band had played several times. When we had bookings, we’d drive straight there, setup, play, then turn around and go home…so I never got a chance to see where I was. I was happy to get 17+ mpg….a lot better than the 10 mpg while pulling the trailer to gigs.
You would think that an 800 mile round trip would be enough….but no….with Elliott’s 11th birthday and our 23d anniversary looming, I had to do something Big. And this time, I had to include Robin. With minimal advance, we took a 5 day cruise on the Carnival Cruise Lines Holiday ship out of Mobile to Progresso and Cozumel, Mexico. http://jrichards.cruiseone.com/travel/cruise_articles/display_editorial.do?edOid=536920798 I had to pay a small fortune to secure a certified birth certificate from Louisiana….they must be in cahoots with the Dept. of Homeland Security. That was peanuts compared to the rest. We bought everything new for the trip, from underwear, socks, shoes, shorts, bathing suits, to razors, bras, hair brushes… camera, memory cards, batteries…….You name it. For those of you who really know me, you understand the big hurdle was whether I could go that long without a phone or email. Turns out the phone companies are only too happy to have you pay big bucks to make calls from Mexico back to the states. The ship loves charging you out the wazoo for internet access….so you only have to be out of touch if you want to be. The cruise was fabulous! Always something to do if you wanted to be involved, or lots of places to chill or sunbathe if you preferred being relaxed. We were treated like royalty…. spoiled beyond reason, and my clothes don’t fit anymore- they shrunk. Robin finally relaxed and forgot about work, and I even saw her smile a couple of times. We tried a lot of fancy dishes in the dining rooms, and even sampled some native fare on the island. Elliott found out how to use his ship charge card to get money to play in the arcade. I really don’t want anyone to know how much he put in those machines. Meredith proved that an 8 year old girl really can eat 18 pieces of pizza, 27 ice cream cones, 5 meals a day on top of that, still be hungry and not gain a pound. Ahhhhhh …to be young again. The highlight of the trip was that the kids swam with dolphins, kissed them, petted them, got a video made in the pool with them….and got a T shirt! That adventure cost about the same as my first car…but what are my kid’s lifetime memories worth? Coming home was a big let down….now WE have to cook and clean and make our own fun. Our backyard is not near as pretty as the sights on the ship.
You’d think that would be enough….but, two days after returning from the cruise, we hopped in the car and motored out to Oklahoma to take my granddaughter back to her home. She is 15, and I have a 15 y/o grandson too. He must be related…made the news and tv…blew himself up with fireworks…and learned the hard way to throw it faster after you light it. My first wife was very hospitable to us, cooking several times (although I think she tried to poison me) And I had to help her husband with a woodworking project (which I really enjoyed). We drove up Mount Scott, visited Fort Sill, http://travel.webshots.com/album/553575409otteYh swam in the creek at Medicine Park http://www.medicinepark.com/
We visited my 84 y/o Aunt in Paris, Tx, saw a cousin for the first time in 35+ years, and ate some fabulous Cajun food in North Louisiana. The trip back was longer than the way there…it always is….We got the windows tinted to help with the heat, but the car kept getting smaller and smaller with every mile. 2 am in the morning, we drove in the driveway.