It's Friday!

Once I got going after class today (around 2pm) I went for a sandwich at "Jersey Mike's Subs" next to Chipotle after hearing my instructor and classmates rave about it. Took it (along with some veggie snacks from home) up to Cabrillo National Monument in order to sit, rest and read in my library book, "Sea Star: Orphan of Chincoteague" (this is my 4th Henry book). I was delighted to watch four different kinds of birds flit back and fourth in the bushes around the secluded little seating area below the visitor center and grab the little crumbs I dropped (or threw!). There was also a speckled squirrel running around begging for tidbits. Two of the birds were cute, but very nondescript. The other two, however, were beautiful. One slim, tall blue/grey & white one and a small black one with orange breast and white speckles on its wings. The freshly sliced turkey and provolone on the wheat sandwich were very good.


After finishing eating, I moved up to behind the visitor's center with the grand overlook of the city and bay. I think it was the same squirrel snooping around. I read more than half-way through the book while I was up there, and got to watch the pair of F-18s come in for a landing, the destroyer and frigate come back to port, and the submarine start cruising out to sea as it got to be 5pm and closing time. What beautiful weather! I could see all the mountains... even stretching into Mexico!

Stopped by Stump's Market on the way home for dinner: chicken enchiladas for $4 and two small avocados for 67 cents total! I got my new Navy Fed check card in the mail (now everything is changed over!), but the checks that came along with it were still in my old name... pointless! And this morning I had to re-order the Medieval Times tickets because they put it in as the week before we're going... thankfully that's fixed now... I'm glad I noticed. Got the Disney ones printed out though... and my "Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter" (authorized edition, softcover, & new looking... for $7) was waiting at the base post office for me. :)

Jw

More Fun With Family

Mom and Dad pulled into town right before 1100, when I told them I got off on Fridays. They had burned down I-5 in two days, stopping in Carlsbad, CA late on Thursday night... and got settled into the hotel by the time they called me.

I got off at 1105, like usual, but my working party had been selected to come back at 2pm to tear down the tables, chairs and signs for the change of command ceremony at bldg. 52. So I decided to go meet them while still in my working uniform... I didn't want to change three more times. And they liked seeing it. We exchanged stuff from our cars... I got my camping equipment in my very own Subaru that they drove down here, and they put all their stuff in their car. They'll drive to see Zac in Yuma today, then drive home to Seattle via several national parks. :)

We went out to lunch together at the eatery right next to the hotel. I then had to go get a base pass for my own car, and that took much less time that I figured, so I was able to spend another hour in their room with them before going back and doing my duty.

When I finally returned in civilian clothes, we headed out on a drive south over the bay bridge to Coronado, all the way down the Silver Strand to National City and the wetlands and beach just before the Mexican border. We saw Tijuana quite clearly from a distance. Stepped onto the beach in front of a border patrol guy with binoculars, looking out to sea for swimmers.

When we came back, we had dinner at the fish & chips place across from the Dolphin on the waterfront along Shelter Island... right where the fishing boats come in... so it was rather good fish & chips. Also had good clam chowder! We all would have liked to take in a good sunset, but the clouds had yet again returned over Point Loma. We went to Sunset Cliffs anyway, so I could show them the park and the expansive view of the ocean. Sat and talked a while, but soon it was sunset... and no break in the clouds.

Back at the Cabrillo Inn, sat down and switched on TCM. A movie was just starting... "Pretty Baby" from 1949. Didn't really know anyone in it, but Mom said the grumpy old guy played Santa Clause on Miracle on 34th Street... which was hilarious. It was very funny, along the lines of "Bachelor Mother". A young 22 yr old wanted a seat on the packed subway on her way to work, so she started using a doll wrapped up in a blanket. She worked for a baby food company, and matters got out of hand when unbeknownst to her, she started talking with her boss and claimed to have named her baby after him.

Saturday we slept in til 9ish, had breakfast at Denny's, stopped by the NEX for discounted tickets for the harbor cruise. Parked at the USS Midway museum downtown, got there around 12:30. Had to wait around for a bit, but we were able to take a tour of two Japanese destroyers on a world cruise before we boarded the tour boat for our hour tour to the north of the bay by my base, the sub base, the Coronado air station, and the sea lions. I was disappointed they only let us walk around on the decks of the destroyers... I sure would have loved to see the berthing or the sonar room. :) After the cruise, we drove to Red Lobster for a nice dinner together. And back at the hotel there were more fun movies on TCM, featuring Jane Greer. The end of "Out of the Past", and all of "The Big Steal", "The Company She Keeps" and "Station West". So much fun!

This morning we packed up, got stuck in a little bit of traffic on Rosecrans (there was a bike race going up and down Canon Street), but finally made it to Perry's Breakfast House for some great food. We drove both the cars though, as they were heading out to spend some time with Zac for the rest of today and tomorrow, and I was heading off for church.

Tonight, Barrett and I are having Italian for dinner and seeing "Much Ado About Nothing" at the Globe. Should continue to be fun, but I already miss Mom and Dad again. I hope coming home in August works. :)

Jp

Family Visit

It was marvelous! Thursday evening we hugged quite a bit, and shared a Chinese dinner together before I had to go back for the night. Zac called though and announced he had been let off entirely for Friday, so he decided to come immediately. Didn't get there until after midnight though, so I didn't see him until they all picked me up around 1500 (3pm) Friday.

Our first task was to get the Navy parking form notarized... and right after that we headed for the Mission Valley Mall where we had an outstanding dinner at Outback Steakhouse for the beginning of a joint birthday/reunion celebration. Lobster & steak was *really* nice. :) They gave us ice cream on the house; I think we talked and enjoyed it for around an hour and a half.

Back at the motel, we found we needed to stop by MCRD for Zac to pick up the EGA insignia he had forgotten to bring along for the dress uniform pictures we wanted to take. So we made a little side trip of it just in time before they closed. Zac and I ran over to the MCX and found them right away.

Again, back at the Dolphin Motel, we relaxed and watched two movies: Disney's new cartoon "Tangled" (with Donna Murphy as the villain!), and "Crimson Tide"... since I haven't ever been able to sit down and watch the whole thing... always too many ad breaks. I loved Tangled! It had elements from Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast... a couple of my favorites. They did a great job putting their classic twist to classic tales. :) I enjoyed Crimson Tide too... but I noticed they got a perfect reading on the SONAR with a broadband signal... Maybe sub-surface SONAR is a little different. :)

So we were all together! Saturday morning we took a while getting up and had breakfast at Denny's. Then it was Sea World all day! We started out with the otters... and stumbled across a little building with a 3-month old baby feeding and playing to her heart's content. There were big windows on her, roughly 3-foot-square, pool... and the windows were only inches away from it. A trainer came out and told us all about her. The dolphin show was neat, but not quite as good as when I saw it in 2008. They had a strange middle part to the show with a couple birds and lots of swimmers dressed up like birds. It confused me terribly! :)

(here's a pic by Dad at the Orca Whale show!)

We then enjoyed the small aquariums, and then a free gondola ride across Mission Bay and back.











I didn't do the latter last time, so I was particularly happy about doing it now. We only had some popcorn and chips at the park, so when we were done, after first getting Zac's required haircut at the NEX, we went back to Mission Valley to eat at Chipotle and then shop at Best Buy, as he requested. As he bought Charade, I ended up buying Disney's "Oceans" from last year (that I saw in the theater with Chaya). Back home again, we watched last year's "The Fighter" with Mark Wahlberg, and then the newly purchased "Charade" (with Cary & Audry) during chat.

Sunday morning I guided them past my library to Ocean Beach for breakfast at the same diner I ate at with Mike. We got a table after just a minute or two, and I had a great big pancake with my corned beef hash and eggs. After this was a trip to the USS Midway (CV 41) that I saw in 2009. But last time I didn't have time for the bridge tour, which we definitely took advantage of this time. Had a great time wandering around again, especially with my family. When we got to the motel we had our little photo shoot with some success:


And then the grand farewell dinner with Zac was held at the Olive Garden near Target. Another outstanding dinner (I need to exercise a lot this week!) and good time with everyone. He left afterwords... and I decided I needed to sleep on base since Monday was a workday. We dropped off all the things they brought me (like my movies, some clothes and my blanket), along with my things from the weekend, and then we headed off for a little drive across the Bay Bridge to Coronado. Found a cute little creamery, and enjoyed some delicious ice cream... I had dark chocolate.

Next morning I met Mom & Dad at the gate at 0630 to get the temp pass I need to park their car on base. That went off without a hitch, and then I had a very long day at school. Did a mock PRT by myself before lunch on the course at Liberty Station... did very well for not having run in a while. I did a mere half-hour of open study in the evening (just to reinforce it) and then met Mom and Dad once more for a little trip downtown to see the newly released "Jane Eyre" at a little theater that plays foreign films. This was done by the British, so it very closely resembled the book... although they condensed the story into 2 hours, and therefore had to make it flash by. I loved it though. So very well done.

At the motel one last time I said goodbye to Mom and Dad, and then drove their car back to base. They got a taxi this morning to take them to the airport. They should be coming back the end of June to bring me mine and pick up theirs! I can't wait for another fun weekend! :)

Jp

It's All Over.

A day for goodbyes.

I started today by going to sleep... a bit after midnight. Dad and I watched "The Book of Eli" (Denzel Washington, 2009) with Zac downstairs last night. Except for the violent dreams I had because of it (where people murdering other people seemed normal) I really loved watching it. Maybe next time I wouldn't watch it right before going to sleep. :) It was set after a worldwide war of destruction where there was no law and every ounce of food and drop of water was precious. I found it unlike most apocalyptic movies I've seen... there was a serious degree of reality to it. And the plot and ending were neither predictable or typical... there was no showdown between the good guy and the bad guy at the end, and the very real Christianity portrayed was not normal for Hollywood - Denzel must have done this because he wanted to. Except for the extreme violence (it wasn't too graphic - it was artfully done... if that's possible) I would love to watch this movie a couple more times.

Merely three hours after going to bed, I woke up with Mom & Dad to take Zac to the airport. I was very glad to interrupt my dreams, and like normal I was wide awake upon getting out of bed. It was very sad to see him go... we had such a good time together and he was able to see much of his friends. Got back home at 4am, and slept in til 10:30. And then everyone came over.

Had a bit of brunch: banana bread and strawberries and then after a little visiting (and a short jog with the dog) we were off for today's entertainment: a cruise on Lake Union (near the Space Needle) on an old-fashioned paddle boat named "Queen of Seattle". The tour guide was a lovely lady who acted as tour guide, pointing out interesting things we passed by, like the dry dock company that built & repaired ships during the war, the place the Boeing company first flew planes, historic Seattle sites like Gas Works Park and the houseboats. Speaking of that, we went rather close by the one "Sleepless in Seattle" was filmed at. I had never seen it before today, so that was neat! (suddenly I want to watch it again!) She also sang and danced in a little live cabaret show with a guy pounding out songs on an old-fashioned piano. Sing-along stuff like "Old Susanna", "And the Band Played On", "Clementine" and a couple others from the gold-rush days about sweethearts and such. It was very fun.

Grandpa and Grandma ordered pizza from Pizza Hut when we got home, and we all sat out on the deck and enjoyed some gorgeous evening sunshine with cool breezes (sorry everyone who's stuck in heat) along with some leftover wedding cake. And after a little bit more visiting in the living room it was time for everyone to leave. I helped my Aunt check in for their flights tomorrow, and there was one more round of goodbyes. I've had such a lovely time with them this weekend... so sad to see them go.

So suddenly the house was very quiet after such bustling activity for so long. My parents and I sat down and watched Netflix... "Pie in the Sky" (Thank you Linda! I loved the first 2 ep's! Very surprised to see young Mr. Foyle!). I always enjoy a good British mystery series.

Well, it's take a breather for the next two days, and then Mom and I are off down the coast to San Francisco and Yosemite for a little alone time. The days are FLYING by.

Jp

Uncanny

I had the strangest thought last night when I was leaving Balboa Park. I thought how risky it was to have outdoor plays... I mean, what if it rained or something? They'd have to cancel or rent everyone raincoats instead of blankets... and then the actor's costumes would be made to none effect... but I digress. No, it didn't rain tonight, but they sure did cancel Cyrano. There was some sort of malfunction with the lighting system or something. When the lady told me, I first thought of my thoughts last night, as if I prepared myself for it... weird!

So I had them refund my ticket (thankfully no hassles), and I went for a walk, trying to find something that was still open. Nothing was, as it was 7:30, so I decided to check out a restaurant nearby (outside the park) that offered a 20% discount to Old Globe subscribers. I picked one particularly out of the group of them because it was named "Baja Betty's" - I mean, I did drive right near her hometown today, so it was sorta fitting. I had tortilla soup and a house salad, partly to continue my streak of having it every time I've been here. It was very tasty.

This morning started off just swimmingly, though. Got to Long Beach pretty much right when I thought I would. My first stop today was visiting a merchant marine ship museum (also built in 1945 and served through Korea and Vietnam) called the SS Lane Victory. It turned out to be a rather cool thing to see. Besides exploring wherever I wanted on deck and some below, there were two big rooms filled with museum exhibits. One in the cargo bay (more generic stuff like "how does the ship navigate?", a mine and depth charge, and surprisingly, a lot of model aircraft and ships. The other was in a mess room, and this had lots of cool stuff, mostly from WWII. Anyway, I spent a little longer than I intended there, but it was no problem.

Next up was the Cabrillo Aquarium in San Pedro (just 5 miles down the street from the ship, really). I had read really nice things about it online, so I was very interested. Holy cow! The place was great! They were very detailed with describing the different kinds of animals and how they live; and that's pretty much all they did. There was no huge agenda (the Birch Aquarium had a whole building set aside for preaching about global warming - I just rolled my eyes and kept walking). They had lots of really different stuff! One tank had bunches of tiny nudibranchs! The building was a big maze of exhibits, and the one drawback was many times the room was too bright to take pictures through the glass... but as a saving grace, a person could walk around most of the tanks in dark, behind the scenes rooms... which was very cool. Lots of times the animals were hiding on the dark side of the tank. ;) My goodness! I spent lots of time there... three hours or so. And then I went for a little wading up to my knees on Cabrillo Beach (the Aquarium is right there next to the beach). Looked at all the types of seaweed and had a lovely stroll. I was a little hungry, as I hadn't made time for lunch... and there was nothing quite as convenient as the stand outside the Birch Aquarium, yesterday, where I had that amazing turkey & avocado baguette.

But the pains from not eating soon disappeared (as they do) as I got back on the road to make it to an unnecessary curtain call of 8 o'clock back in San Diego. There's nothing quite like sitting in traffic for a couple hours, then missing the turn-off because a person could finally go faster than 20 mph and because they were singing to the music they were listening to, then getting worried about ending up in Mexico, and then finally having the play cancelled... all without eating since 8am... LOL! A comedy of errors! Although the drive was pretty (I spent lots of that time in traffic looking deep into Camp Pendleton - where my brother had just been for weeks on end - and looking out to sea... it was brilliantly blue and the sun was casting long shadows inland. So beautiful.

So, mixed feelings about today, but it was generally pretty good. At least I have already read Cyrano! LOL - and it's a darned good thing I didn't come down here just for that one! Yikes!

Jp

P.S. - Coming back to SD, as I was listening to the episode of Our Miss Brooks where there is a strange telegram that no one opens... they mention the name of the town where her uncle is from... and then poof! there is a sign above me for an exit to a street with THE SAME NAME as that town. It was a two-word name, and it can't be all that common. What are the chances? Precisely as she says it? Holy cow! Nine-hundred-thousand-zillion to one. Or something like.

Here I Am Again... And Loving It.

I didn't feel like getting up right away this morning at 4:30... until I remembered what I was doing... and then it still took me a second. :) My dad drove me to the airport, and as I had checked in online yesterday, I went right to security and flew right through it, unbelievably. My gate was just a few doors down, and right before arriving I stopped at the Great American Bagel Company and got myself what they call a "Seattle Sunrise" breakfast bagel. Only needed to hang out for about a half-hour before they started boarding. Got sleepy right away after finding my window seat right in front of the exit row on the wing. Woke up when the engines kicked on for takeoff... took a picture or twenty of the mountains... (and the Columbia River, separating Washington and Oregon - a half hour into the flight) - gosh, the cloud cover in front of Mt. Rainier made it look like the world was blanketed in snow...


...and then sort of slept for about an hour and a half. It was the smoothest plane ride I've ever been on. Then again, maybe that's because I was checked out... but I doubt it.

It took a little longer than I anticipated to get to the car rental place and get my car... but my very detailed schedule worked out excellently with it anyway... I had time to spare wherever I went today :)

Drove right to the USS Midway (CV41), right on the harbor drive. The admission includes a self-guided audio tour that you can punch location numbers into and hear the story about the place. Doing the entire thing was estimated at 3+ hours, so I just listened to what sparked my interest. I did everything in an hour and a half. Wow! I want to join the Navy! :) In the ready room for the pilots a former Midway pilot was there to answer questions or whatnot, and we talked for a moment. He was very supportive and nice to talk to. As the carrier lived through three wars, it had planes ranging from WWII to the present day. Very fun indeed! They had the Dauntless (pictured) and an Avenger in the hanger, and then all sorts of modern and older jets and helicopters on the deck.

Although hungry after finishing at noon or so, I got in the car directly and drove up the coast 10 miles to the Birch Aquarium. Now that place was just totally cool! I saw some species for the first time... including upside-down jellies (their tentacles float on top - didn't know they existed) live nautiluses and so many different types of corals, keeping count would have been impossible. And they had five leafy sea dragons! That was so cool! :) It was a simple aquarium, as they are just a branch of a ocean research group, but they sure put on a good show!


I left right around 4PM, and when I saw the line for I-5 South, I was glad I was early! But it ended up moving just fine. Just took a second to get on. Drove straight to Balboa Park, found extremely close parking, walked around for a good bit, exploring and finding three museums that I'd like to peek into if I get the time. I changed out of my sweaty t-shirt into a nice blouse for the evening and I then treated myself to The Prado again, like last time I was here. Had that same salad... and surprise, a pasta dish! :) Last year I had Julius Caesar with me during dinner, but this time I started Animal Farm. Had to have a dish of ice cream too... :)

I've never read Twelfth Night before. In fact, I still haven't. But I realized, as I was watching it (and adoring it) that this is the way these plays were meant to be enjoyed for the first time... with actors! (that's just my lazy excuse for not having taken the time to read it before now like I told myself I would). The director decided to have it set in the 1950's. So they were reading old English lines, but looking like they should be behaving like people from Happy Days. It took a second to get used to, but I did. In fact, it worked just fine. My gosh, I can't imagine Celia as Viola... acting "like a boy!" Oh, dear! :) Oh, and Amanda's husband did all the set designs for these outdoor plays! Awesome! This stage is right next to the Old Globe... the theater which is currently playing the one Rupert Holmes wrote the book for. It was nice to see his name on a big poster :) Gosh, I miss WENN...

I got to the hotel here at 11:30. And that's what it should be for the next two nights.

No problems, no worries, smooth sailing... so far!
Whoa... you mean to tell me I have 2 + more days to go? Sweet!

I like it when hotels have free wi-fi...
Jp