Getting Out

Well now that Academy Award nominations have been announced we know all the movies we haven’t seen that are up for awards. Some of them we will not see but have tried to see some of them the last couple of weeks. The last two we saw were The Last King of Scotland and Notes on a Scandal. Once we make it out of the park we try do several things while we are out.
Dinner is always a nice ending to the outing. By catching the afternoon matinee we are out in time to get an early dinner. Just as good and cheaper. Well maybe they give a smaller portion but we need smaller portions. The last place we went for dinner was Babe’s. It is a barbeque place with excellent pork, beef and chicken. One of the choices for sides is sweet potato fries. They even have a sheet at the front desk on how much better they are for you. They are different but good. So that was a good choice. The only problem is so many choices and so little time.
Yesterday we also needed some food so visited two stores we had not visited before. The first one was Bristol Farms. It is a gourmet high end food store all the wine, cheese, meat, ect. for the person looking for the best quality and willing to pay the price. They had numerous samples and we bought a strawberry cholate smoothie that was great. A very interesting place and nice to know if you are looking for something a little different and special.
The second place was Henry’s Farmers Market. It had a great variety of organic foods and bulk food. Here we did buy most of the groceries we needed. But I think we will still do much of the special shopping at Trader Joe’s.

Steak fry

Well of Friday we had just a little more excitement at RCB. I played my tennis and took my walk. Tennis has its good days and bad day but mostly it is fun. I have a couple of groups a men that I play with that are about even or at least not too much better than I am so I can enjoy the playing. We will soon have the tennis tournament and I will have to share pictures and find creative ways to explain my losses.
The walk I try to take any day I don’t play tennis is always good exercise and I enjoy seeing the people and the birds as I wonder the park. I have not set path but try to wonder around for about an hour at a good pace. I also try to walk around the park as I take part in some of the activities.
But for the excitement we had a Steak Fry on Friday night. For this you bring your own meat to barbeque and your drink of choice. A backed potato, garlic bread, and desert are provided. It can take a while for 200 people to cook their steaks but we go out in 6 different groups so it moves right along. It is a good social time with the people as you wait your turn to go out to the barbeque and while you are cooking the steaks.
After we had finished eating there was a three piece band that played music for dancing. I found it difficult to dance to most of their music but one Greek couple that had helped with the preparation for the dinner did their Greek folk dance and a few people joined them.

How Cold Is It??

How Cold is It? Well I do feel a little guilty complaining about the cold while others suffer in REAL cold. But then we did come south for the winter to avoid the cold rainy weather. This last week it was the coldest it has been in 40 years here in the valley. Of course the loss for the citrus fruit farmers is very bad for them and for those of us that want to buy the oranges.
Although it does get cold during the night when the sun comes up it warms up very quickly. Luck for us we do have a deck that faces south so even when the outside temperature may only be 6o degrees or less it will be in the 70’s on the deck and I can sit in comfort. My early morning walk is cold and some of the water standing in the street has a thin sheet of ice. Another sad event is the frost did kill some of the flowers and stunted others. It looks like our bougainvillea may have been frosted. Of course that is not all bad. It grows so much that I always have to cut it way back to meet park requirements and it never has blossoms that we get to enjoy.
I still get to play tennis several times a week and it is not raining so I must say, “Yes, it is cold here but we really don’t have much to complain about.”

The Making of a Star

We just completed our tryouts for the Cabaret Show this year and we did not have a great number of people attending. In fact we still could use another man. Several of the men that were in the show last year have decided to not take part this year. It is very demanding of time and many people have other things they want to do in life like visit grandchildren or play golf. So it is ok, I understand the need to make choices and only want people in the show that are willing to give the time and effort needed.
Last years show was a success and we hope to repeat again this year. We had three men and five women at tryouts. All but one of the women are sopranos. However some can sing alto. That means that we have more women than we can use and could use another man. That means that I had to personally contact a couple of men that had said they might be interested and decide which women I must tell we won’t be able to use her this year. We I talked with two men and one said I will tell you by the end of the week and the other said no. We will see, it is always better if they say yes right away.
As for the women I will have to consult with my singing partner and the musical director but I think I know which one will be the choice. It is always hard to not select a person when you know they really want to be part of the show.
Tonight I also get to work with the other big show at RCB. The Big Star Night, which is a lip-sync show that many people enjoy doing. There is always some feeling of competition with our live music show but they are really very different and provide expanded opportunities for the people here.

New Years at RCB

New Years at RCB had a number of large and small group activities happening. But maybe the most important thing in getting ready for the late night was the nap in the afternoon. We were attending two activities. I wanted to go to a street dance with a live band and Marilyn wanted to attend the dance at Clubhouse 1 with a DJ. So we did both.

I was helping with sound for the band so I had to go over early and do a sound check and then once in awhile I was running to the sound board to make some adjustments. There was actually the band with five guys and the singer and then another couple that she played drums and he played honky-tonk piano. It wasn’t too cold but they did have a number of heaters setup around the area so you could go and warm up if you got cold. So this ran from 7 to 9 PM and then off to the clubhouse for the last of the night.

We had a lot of country music and music not really suited for ballroom dancing but we survived. After our champagne toast at midnight we headed home because we were playing tennis at 8 AM today.

Wildlights

We finally took time to visit the Living Desert for the Wildlights. “More than 350,000 twinkling lights illuminate the park after dark, turning the desert into a holiday winter wonderland. North American and African plants and animals as well as traditional holiday scenes are depicted in giant lighted displays.”

We joined our friends Barbara and Dave for pizza at their place then went on the Living Desert to see the lights. It had been a windy day and with the temperature drop you always get in the desert when the sun goes down we had a number of layers to protect from the cold. Luckily the wind in the park was not bad and we did not get cold. We started with an animal show with rats, Serval, Owl, Hedgehogs and Porcupine making an appearance.

We then took a leisurely stroll through the light displays. With a number of moving displays and the mixture of lights it was enjoyable but difficult to get all the photos I would like. The golfing Santa and red Teddy Bear were some of the favorites but their were many other displays were outstanding.

To add to the enjoyment there wood-burning fireplaces, hot apple cider, hot chocolate, s’mores, barbecued hot dogs and hamburgers available at two different locations as you wondered around the display.

Christmas at RCB

Well what is like to have Christmas in Indio, California? Well I have spent many cold winters in the snow in Montana and Wyoming and rainy cold winters in Oregon. Now it is the desert of Indio, California. Well we did go out to the mall on Saturday. Not that we had a lot of shopping to do but did enjoy the crowd and the festive decorations. Even got to see Santa. It was in the 70’s and sunshine. Yes I will admit I enjoy not driving in snow or ice and facing the cold weather.
Well for Christmas Eve we were off to the RCB Chapel. For the Christmas Eve service I sang A Midnight Noel for special music. I enjoy having a chance to share this talent I have with the people at RCB and they continue to tell me how much they enjoy it so it makes it easy to continue.
We started our Christmas by playing tennis first thing in the morning. Marilyn was in charge of our table for Christmas dinner so she met we some of the other ladies to decorate the table and do all of those things that are important to her and not to me, to make the dinner perfect. We gathered at about 3:30 PM for drinks and sococializing before dinner. There were 11 tables of 12 people each. The dinner was catered but we supplied dessert and appetizers and our drinks. Again I took the chance to lead some group singing. After dinner and setting the tables back to normal setting, we went back home. All in the sun and warm 70 degree temperature. Of course once the sun goes down it is headed toward 40 degrees for the night but we enjoy the warm days.
More pictures of the dinner and shopping are on my Flickr photos.

Getting Out

Well last night was our first real chance to go out. There are so many activities here at RCB that we seem to akways be off to a potluck, playing tennis, or working on a project and we seldom leave the park except to get food or other things we need.
One of the projects I have been helping on is digging out a hole to pour concrete base for recycle bins. Most of the garbage areas only have room for one bin so we are in the process of adding a second bin. One of the big things in this park is that you save money by having people volunteer to help doing a project. Well four additional pads have been created except for laying the block walls around the pad. I know nothing about laying blocks so should not be asked to help with that project.
Well back to getting out. I met the Artistic Director for the La Quinta Playhouse this last week and will be working with her to bring one of their shows to the park. (More on that latter.) They were doing A Tuna Christmas as their show right now, and I thought it would be a fun show to see. Two guys playing 28 parts both male and female of the Christmas Eve activities of Tuna, TX. After all today is the ninth anniversary of our engagement. So we when out to dinner at the Elephant Bar and then on to the show.
It is a new theatre that has yet to build a building so they perform in a tent. It will hold about 80 people and has a small stage. Maybe that is the reason they would like to use our clubhouse even though I feel it has a small stage. But with only two people in the show it worked. It was a funny show and a nice chance to get out.

Christmas Caroling

Well tonight was the RCB Christmas Caroling. People decorate their golf carts and drive around the 800 spaces in the park to places where the people are not able to get out very much. In an over 55 park like ours that means a number of places. I am sure we missed some and some people were not home but we made a number of stops.

The number of people that turned out for the parade and singing was great. I did not get a count but there must have been at least 30 carts and several people on each cart. Four people were on ours.

After the singing we all gathered at Clubhouse 2 for chili and Christmas goodies. Many people helped in preparing and serving the chili but I do have a picture of the two people that cooked the chili. After the drive around the park in the cool weather the people were glad to return to the warm building for an evening of eating, drinking, and fellowship.

Going South

Well we finished the first day of travel with rain about half of the time. It wasn’t too bad. We did make good time so we made it to Lodi before 6 PM. Part of the reason was that it was Sunday and we didn’t have any bad traffic that slowed us down.
As we pasted Mt Shasta we stopped and Weed and I took a picture. I must say it looks like they are having the same problem as many other ski resorts. There appeared to be much less snow that other times we have driven down.
Of course we did get to drive through the Sate of Jefferson. It is always fun to see the barn and the metal sculpture along the road. I didn’t get a picture; they are both on the other side of the interstate. Maybe another day.
Yes we have been at Indio for 3 days and I have yet to post the Drive down. I have been busy with all the things you need to do to get things up and running. I still have to get the golf cart going. I have a call into the man that sold it to us and knows something about them but he was out of town for a few days.
The second day was a good drive. We had a lot of heavy fog for the first 100 miles but then got better. Now we are cleaning, unpacking, buying what we need and even getting some tennis in. Marilyn played Wed. and I play tomorrow.
I assume that Mt. Shasta and others in the northwest now have more snow. I am glad we are not in Corvallis during this storm. I read that 19,000 customers in Corvallis were without electricity and 91,000 in the area and many houses were hit by falling trees. It is nice to not have tall pine trees next to our house. Also flood warnings are out but we live on the hill. But then we are here now it is just thinking about what it would be to be there.

Christmas Party

Ok, so this isn’t all about me. Marilyn’s exercise group had a dinner to celebrate Christmas and at the last minute she talked me into singing for the ladies. Ok I didn’t put up too much of a fight but I really didn’t have my Christmas Show ready yet.
Well I got my iPod ready and took along my speakers. Then got out the Santa hat, red shirt, and white tie. Since I didn’t have all the songs memorized, I had to print out the words. Then after a few practice runs at less than full volume to save my voice I was ready.
Marilyn said to show up at 7:15. They were to start eating at 6:15 so that should mean they would be about done. Well they were just in the middle of eating and drinking when I arrived so I waited until about 7:40. I hoped they would have most of their talking over by that time. There was 23 of the ladies in a private home so it was crowded (the picture shows half of the ladies). Well it is a fine line with people drinking wine between them having enough to relax and enjoy your presentation, with mistakes, and having too much so they make your singing harder.
I started out with White Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, and Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer. Of course many wanted to join in on the singing and the Grandma song almost required it. That was fine but with recorded music it doesn’t wait for you or speedup when you do. So I had to try to hear the music and not listen to the singers.
I finished on a more serious note, with Midnight Noel (It Came Upon the Midnight Clear and The First Noel) and O Holy Night. Both arranged by Mark Hayes. I enjoy singing his arrangements but the piano part is difficult. For this performance I had the CD of Mark Hayes playing. I plan to sing O Holy Night for chapel on the 17 and then I will have my friend Ruth playing for me.
I think the ladies enjoyed the singing and it was nice to get a practice completed. I will be ready by next week.

Early Christmas

Since we will be driving south soon, we need to get our Christmas done in Oregon before we leave. That means we must drive through Pastega’s Pepsi Bottling Plant display at least once before we leave. I guess the Grinch was out this year as someone stole one of the display figures. It is such a shame that people can’t just leave it all for everyone to enjoy. I will admit we made the circle twice, but then we were only following the example of the pickup in front of us.

Also Grandma Marilyn wanted to be with the kids when they opened their presents so we went to Portland on Sunday to share gifts with her son’s and the two granddaughters. I think the girls were happy so that was what was important. It was a good day and ended by Brooke taking us out to dinner. Things are going well on the new job answering phone for Adobe - money to spend.

Now Marilyn just has all the other Christmas lunches and dinners with her friends this week before we leave.

California Here I Come

Well I would say it is official now, I am ready to head South. The last two nights have provided a good dusting of snow, this morning temperature is 30 degrees Fahrenheit, and schools are on two-hour delay. This is the time when living on top of the hill and now having snow tires can be frustrating. Not that the roads are really that bad but they do freeze up and night and driving first thing in the morning for my 7 AM tennis is not something I enjoy. So I passed on tennis the last two mornings. Even the paper was late today because the man that normally drives around delivering the paper had to walk. After growing up in Wyoming and living in Montana for many years I have enjoyed being in the California desert when the snow comes. The many cold mornings of feeding the cows or driving to work on icy roads have made me appreciate the warm winter sun.

I did put out new food for the birds, turned on the fireplace, and watched the chickadees. It was very different from a month ago when the birds were feeding on the sunflower and other seeds about the garden. But there were still a few seeds in the sunflower and the fresh seeds in the feeder attracted a number of hardy chickadees. It also attracted the neighborÂ’s cat. He thought the gathering of birds looked like lunch. However, in the white snow it was difficult for him to hide so I think he had to go back home for lunch.

Well it is another day so time to make a cup of hot chocolate and watch the birds or maybe in should start packing.

Thanksgiving is Over

Well another Thanksgiving has come and gone. We had the two of us and Marilyn’s two son’s and two granddaughters for dinner. Marilyn has been cooking for days. She made the pecan pie, cranberry salad, green bean casserole, and sweet potatoes all before the day started. They were put in the freezer and this almost caused a problem when the green beans didn’t thaw out in time. Thanks for the microwave; it comes in handy in a time like that.

O course Marilyn had set the table on Monday. She always has the table ready for days anytime we are having guests. It has to be just right you know.

Well the turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, and gravy were mine so I started early this morning. I had 4 onions that needed to be diced. One for the gravy, two for the dressing and one for the mushroom soup I always make with the stock and meat from the turkey carcass. For the soup I sautéed them with mushrooms and set aside for tomorrow when I make the soup. The two for the dressing were sautéed with some sausage, and the last one was sautéed with the giblets to make a stock for the gravy,

With that done I could take some time off. The family wasn’t going to eat until 3:30 PM and I have been using the plastic bag to cook the turkey so even for a 17 pound stuffed turkey it is about three hours. So about 11 AM I put together the snuffing and put the turkey in the oven. It was time for another break. The stock for the gravy was cooking and just needed time.

Of course the hardest time is that last rush. Cook the potatoes, mash the potatoes, make the gravy, and get everything on the table. It was a great meal and everyone ate more than they should. Now after playing some games with the girls and doing dishes it is time to relax with just the two of us. Time to think about the things we are thankful for: good health, family that is making it on their own, my 7 AM tennis friends, and the RCB Cabaret Singers especially Pauline and Ruth that make my singing possible again after many years of not singing.

Maui Aquarium

While in Maui we spent a half-day visiting the Maui Ocean Center http://www.mauioceancenter.com/ . We had not visited the aquarium since soon after it opened in 1998. I am not sure if they have added more or I had just forgotten how great it was. We could have spent more time looking at all the exhibits and it was great to see so many of the fish we see snorkeling as well as many other we would not see in the ocean. Since we had scheduled a boat trip to snorkel that afternoon we had to cut the visit short.

One of the things we got were the handheld sticks that have recorded information about many of the exhibits. With the granddaughters this was great. While they may not take the time to read or look at many of the exhibits, they found it a great game to look for the numbers to enter and then listen to what was said about the display. Why is it they will pay attention to a recorded message and not written information or something you are trying to tell them?

I am not sure what I enjoyed the most. It was interesting to see the diver in the tank bringing two heads of romaine lettuce to put in the coral for the fish to eat. We spent most of the time in the area with all the tanks of the fish that you can find in the waters around Hawaii. They had small seahorses and large rays and sharks as well as all the beautiful fish you can find in the coral reefs. It was a great opportunity to get up close and personal with so many of the fish. We even had a chance to listen to a couple of naturalists at different locations telling us about the exhibit and answering questions.

I would have to say that a visit to the Maui Ocean Center is well worth the time and money, if you are on the island.

Water Spout

One of the special events we had a chance to observe was a water spout . I have never had a chance to see one before and was able to get a picture. We were not that close but still something I will remember. There were several that tried to form but only one of them reached the ocean level.
We were on the beach across from the condominium where we were staying. The granddaughters were playing the ocean and a storm was threatening but they were having a great time in the warm water. We watched for several minutes as several other formations would start in the clouds but fail to reach the water.

Keiki Hula

Each time we visit Maui we enjoy driving up to Lahaina to visit the Cannery on Sunday afternoon to see the Keiki Hula. Sometimes it is truly children doing the hula other time there will be the full range in age from 3 years to late teens The number of participants will also vary. It always if fun to watch the young dancers and you leave with a special feeling about the kids up on stage doing their best while their Moms and Dads watch and join the tourist taking pictures.

This year we were very lucky to have one of the largest, most talented, and most diverse groups we have seen. Maybe it was because the next weekend was the hula contest at one of the local hotels or maybe it was just the luck of the draw. There were fifteen dancers and three of them were boys, or should I say young men. That is the most male dancers I think I have seen at these shows. It was announced that many of the dancers would be competing the next weekend and I wish them the best. I will not know how well they did but I enjoyed there dancing.

The dancing included the full range of hula from all the islands and required many costume changes and the use of a great variety of props. It is always a great show but I think this time was one of the best and it is a FREE, what a deal. Of course they do have their basket out and the Mothers were selling Hawaiian Sweet Bread to raise money for the group. I was more than happy to participate in both. The bread was delicious and it is not a small task to collect all the costumes, props, and other material needed for a show. They even had very good live music to accompany them in their dancing.

In the Kitchen with Leon

As I looked at all my tomatoes, I didn’t want to waste any of them but am never sure just what to do with them. One thing is certain you won’t use them all, right now. So I was off finding my options for the tomatoes sitting on the sunroom floor.

First there was roasted tomato sauce. Tomatoes, onions, garlic, and basil with a little olive oil, salt and pepper drizzled over the top and into the oven for about an hour until all the tomatoes are wrinkled and the basil and onion blacken. Then it was into the blender for a smooth sauce good for a number of uses. I have found it good with spaghetti or other pasta. Adding a little ground beef or sausage made a great dinner. But then all of that can’t be use NOW. I did six baking dishes of them after all. So two cups of sauce are put into freezer bags and into the freezer. Oh yes, don’t forget to leave some in a container in the refrigerator for use this week.

Next there was salsa. Tomatoes, red onion, garlic, cilantro, and hot pepper all finely chopped. That was the biggest job. No food processor can do the job just the way you want it done. I would have to say this has been a hit with visitors that have stopped by. A few chips and the people were very happy.

But there were still more tomatoes and I had five bags of sauce in the freezer. Then it was drying tomatoes in the oven. Well that was simple cut in half, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and into the warm oven for ten hours. They are not completely dry but look great. I am looking forward to trying them with some pasta, mushrooms, olive oil, and ???

With all the cooking, I decided it was time to share with neighbors some of my work. So we had three of the couples in the neighborhood over for our Italian dinner. After all there I can make the stuffed tomatoes, and put diced tomatoes in both the soup and beef dish. Oh yes, a little slice of tomato is a great topper on the crostini covered with some of the fresh pesto and Parmesan cheese.

Well that had taken care of most of the tomatoes and I was getting tired of the tomatoes. It was off to my new cookbook of American Classics where I found a great recipe for Chicken and Dumplings. Starting with a whole chicken and using the back and wings to make the chicken broth and topping with the light dumplings, it was a wonderful trip through the kitchen. Well, with all the food you had to have company so a last minute call to Norm and Mary Lee provided some assistance in eating the fresh salsa and Chicken and Dumplings.

Visit to the Zoo

It was Stevie’s ninth birthday so a trip to the Oregon Zoo and Chuck E Cheese was required. The weather forecast said it was to be sunny and warm but it was cloudy and raining off and on. But it wasn’t that cold and cool weather that meant that the animals were more active. Some were inside but then we could go inside and stay out of the rain.

What was the favorite animal to visit? For the granddaughters it was the penguins. I think it was prompted by the ability to play with the penguins. The penguins liked their pink jackets and would follow their arms as they moved them next to the glass. As for me it was hard to select a favorite. The Anaconda was huge with only its nose above the water so it could breath to the wolf wondering about its space.

It must have been feeding time. Many of the animals were eating that made taking photographs difficult in many cases. The grizzly bear would never raise his head while the chimpanzee was fun to watch as he took the ears of corn from the others to eat. The elephants didn’t seem to want to be out in the rain so didn’t see much of them except for the younger one that seemed to be chased away from the entrances. Maybe there was food in there and they didn’t want to share.

After about three hours wondering around the zoo, the girls wanted to leave. Since the zoo was about to close, we called their Father and headed for Chuck E Cheese. For the girls this is tokens that they seem to spend quickly to get a few prize tickets that they can exchange for cheap prizes. Oh yes, there is also pizza and soda but they have little time for that until the tokens are gone. But it makes them happy and Grandma always gets a picture of them with Chuck E Cheese.

King Estate Winery Visit

The warm fall days make for a great outing through the Oregon countryside. We spent last Saturday taking the back roads to visit the King Estate Winery. The winery is located south of Eugene on a hill overlooking the vineyards of grapes used to make the wine. Taking the back roads was slower but allowed more opportunity to see the countryside. A couple of times I had to pull over to let some of the local drivers speed on down the road. They see it every day and don’t find any special enjoyment in the view.

Once there we had to find our way to the tasting bar. A couple of car clubs were just leaving so it was not too crowded. After tasting six generous pours of different local wines from the winery including two sweet after dinner wines, we were ready for lunch. We purchased a couple of bottles of wine and started our wait for a table. They serve a small plate lunch and a larger dinner after 5 PM. Each dish has a suggested wine given but not required. There was a breeze that made dining outside in the shade cool but the view made it worth getting a jacket.


It was one of those days that would be nice to do more often but the distance does make it something you must plan to do.