Vacation Journal


Day 1: Wednesday January 25

Denver to Atlanta - uneventful
Atlanta layover: We met up with Gathering friends Kelly and Megan and their Gathering friend John, who was not going to Wales this year, but actually just on his way back to Oman for work and had a layover same time as us.

Atlanta - Manchester: I've never had such awful wine on a plane, or anywhere actually (except maybe in a college dorm room in the 80's), and what's up with no tvs in the backs of the chairs? Watched Moneyball edited for airplane passengers and fell asleep, then awoke with a horrible feeling that all was not well with my body, so quite logically headed for the bathroom.

Halfway there, I remember thinking "I'm doing great. No one can tell I feel sick..." and then heard "Ma'am, are you on any medication?" as I realized that I was laid flat on the floor of the plane with flight attendants surrounding me.  Someone must have caught me as I collapsed because I escaped with only a rugburn on my elbow and slight embarrassment.  We asked for lots of prayer heading into this trip so if you've been praying for me to be slain in the spirit--well done; if not, how about upping those prayers for safe travels and my health?

Day 2: Thursday January 26 

Caernarfon Jetlag Day!
Upgraded to a Volvo family station wagon with the quirkiest GPS ever. Randy drove very well and only swore once.

We stayed at the Travelodge for a whopping £12.00 and I tried the roasted aubergine with honey marinated vegetables at the Black Boy Inn. Both were risks that paid off.

Day 3: Friday January 27

Caernarfon Castle - a fun return visit with Kelly & Megan
On to the Gathering. Despite all the hype about Pontins being a dump, our apartment was warm and toasty when we got there, and we didn't find Classic to be such a downgrade from Club accommodation. They all need updating and a good clean, but we're not expecting the Ritz. It's punk rock after all. I was convinced for a while that we were in this EXACT apartment, but upon watching again, I see from the view that it's a different one with the same iron stain and bathroom floor issues.



The Alarm's ACOUSTIC SET was full band with the bewildering addition of Steve Norman (Spandau Ballet) on tambourine and guitar.

A very fat drunk man decided to start a personal mosh pit with Kelly and had to be manhandled away from us by security when Randy nearly punched him after several stern warnings. While we tried to handle things ourselves and without too much distraction, apparently, at least two people who were on stage inquired about it the next day to either see if we were ok or to commend us for holding our ground. The whole thing was disconcerting and a big distraction from an otherwise enjoyable set.


More to come...


Day 4: Saturday 01.28 
How many Chinese food eaters can you get in a Pontins chalet? How late did we stay up?


Day 5: Sunday 01.29 
Beach Walk and goodbyes to Gatherers.
Upon arrival in Manchester, we have a whale of a time navigating through Chinese New Year to the Ibis Hotel. Once settled in, I gained access to the internet and learned that my work friend Joe Leslie had died. He was a really fun and generous guy to work with, and I will really miss him. A few days later, I learned that it was some kind of stroke/aneurism that took his life. 


Day 6: Monday 01.30
Three trains to Phil & Sarah Carlson's in Letchworth Garden City, followed by a great walk through the town, the cemetery, and the farmer's field, to the Three Horseshoe's Pub, where we set by the fire, drank beer, and pet other people's dogs. 


Day 6:  Tuesday 01.31


Day 7: Wednesday 02.01


Day 8: Thursday 02.02
Flew easyjet to Prague where we were relieved that the guitar arrived unscathed (after finally finding it in the "fragile" items separate luggage arrivals area), and met by John Waldrop who took us home to the whole family in the Skoda!

Day 9: Friday 02.03
Concert at Devicka (Day-vits-ka) Train Station facility to benefit Magdala Project! We made 21,000 Kc which is about $1,112 to fight human trafficking and help women who have been trafficked reunite with their families or build a new life. We couldn't believe how warm and receptive the packed crowd was and we are so grateful to the people of International Church of Prague for promoting and attending this concert, particularly John & Esther Waldrop. The youth group was surprisingly into it and "Life is Sweet" was a big hit with them.

Day 10: Saturday 02.04
John helped us find our way to the main train station so we could board the train to Revnice, about a 45-minute ride where we met Daniel, the main pastor at Common Grounds. 

Ramblings on my personal musical history...

Last night, I got to sing with Danny Byram, a fantastic musician who has been part of my life and my family's life for over 25 years now. It was really fun to be a backup chick again and learn some challenging oooh's and aah's with a bunch of very talented musicians. In addition to opening the concert with Randy, my favorite part of the night was the big carol singalong. I am a nerd for a big carol singalong (especially if I get a microphone). It must have something to do with my parents' Christmas parties in the 1970's.

My mom's family is very musical and while my dad's guitar skills left something to be desired, he was better than he ever claimed to be, and he always surrounded himself with good musicians. In fact, Danny was one of those. He came to stay and work at the camp my dad ran when I was about 15 and gave me some of my first voice lessons.

Growing up in Buena Vista was pretty boring, but Danny would entertain us by coming over and playing cool pop songs on the piano and letting us all sing along. My best friend Roni always made sure she was spending the night if my parents were out late and Danny was in charge so we could sing Huey Lewis and Billy Joel songs with him. ;)

Speaking of the 1970s, another highlight of last night’s concert for me was singing “Two Hands” with Danny as an encore. I have a very distinct memory as a three year old of being held up by the hips by my mother at a concert listening to this song (originally recorded by Love Song) performed live by a group at our church, one hand up in the air and the other reaching forward and thinking that it would be cool to be in a band. I may have been singing along. It was my first live show.

My mother today informed me that the band I saw that night was "Mr. Jeff's band." Mr. Jeff was a musician who moved in with my family when he was about 30 and I was 6. The deal my father made with him was that he could live with us rent free following his divorce as long as it was okay with my mom, but he had to write down one of his songs a day. He had written and performed hundreds of original songs but never written them down!

I had to move out of my bedroom and share with my sister so that he could have a room, so I made a deal with him that he had to sing me any new material first. He taught me James Taylor songs and was the first person ever to tell me that I was off key and show me how to work out a harmony. He was very frustrated with that process and so was I because everyone tells a 6 year old that everything they sing is beautiful but I will forever be grateful for the moment he looked at my little 6 year old face and said, "You're off key! Stop going sharp!"

He put of a few of the poems I had written at age 5 to music, and wrote me a bluesy song about my stubbed toe which became a hit with the neighborhood kids, then went on to write some kids' songs and a musical called "Doodlebugs" after he left our home a year later. I like to think we helped him learn to work with the kids' market.

At rehearsal the other night, Danny told me I was going sharp as I completely botched his arrangement of "O Little Town of Bethlehem." Dangit! It still happens all the time. I am fortunate to have friends with perfect pitch and lots of patience.

Getting the metal out!!

For the first 12 years or so, four different dentists told me nothing was wrong. Finally a few years back, the x rays at Endodontics of Cherry Creek found it!

"It" was a broken dental file lodged in the tip of my root canal since a procedure in the early 90s.

Not only did it mean I had a foreign object in my mouth, but it also meant the original infection was blocked from being completely cleared. Every 4-6 weeks for the past 17 years or so, my body loses the fight and I experience the symptoms of an abcess tooth for a few days til I can fight it off again. A second root canal proved unsuccessful.

Yesterday Dr. Ellen Sachs removed IT.

If you want to gross yourself out, look up apical surgery on youtube; otherwise just take my word for it.

At the moment, I'm recovering well but a little frustrated that the only way to rig an ice pack involves a gag order. Randy must think this is hilarious!

Fall Fell Fallen

FALL!

FALL!

FALL!

I am soooo ready for fall! I already have pumpkin scented votives purchased and am longing for weather that is boot friendly! This summer has been one of the hottest I can remember in Denver, with more days than not lately in the 90s and a big tease of a sky that looks like it will rain but never does.

MUSIC NEWS
There is an ep written. Put a scratch vocal down tonight. Randy is strumming away in the other room. I hope we can make it available in January. So far, on the list of songs up for possible inclusion there are four songs that start with the letter L, and two that include the word "bound" in the title.

NOT SO FAST...

THE SUMMER IN REVIEW:

Here are some things that happened this summer, in random order:

On 7/20, we celebrated our 20th anniversary. We got a whole 36 hours to do so, so we drove to Glenwood Springs for an overnight, but first...

PICTURES

Our friend Kristol Kumar took some fun pictures taken for our 20th anniversary. I think we still look in love...because we are.

Since these pics were taken, I have cut all my hair off and signed up for boot camp. Thanks Groupon. I am probably going to die, and there won't be a ponytail to provide relief, but I'm going to die trying because with 42 looming (I hate the even numbers!) my thighs are betraying me.

On our anniversary getaway, I was pretty excited about the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park Alpine Coaster. So worth it! I wish I had done it ten times!

On the way home, I took a picture of the scenery but the windshield caught the reflection of my feet. It made me think of that worship song...

Finally, the rocks are gone! The gravel in our front yard has been removed and Randy being the nurturer that he is has gone Hank Hill all over our little patch of land. It's green and beautiful and passes the bare feet test!

Red Rocks has been a frequent hangout for me between tours and volunteering for Love Hope Strength and corporate events. The only show I actually bought tickets to was Peter Gabriel, but I wound up there for several rainy evenings anyhow. Here's a brightly colored crowd in their rain gear waiting for the storm to pass.

and a shot of the first-ever dinner seating for thousands IN the amphitheater itself. So bright it could be seen from the highway.

The pianos returned to the 16th Street Mall!

Kathy finished her ep "Little Seasons" and we had the release party at Solid Grounds. CDs arrived last minute as they always do, and this UPS guy had no clue what to think when he was greeting with cheers and a camera by three women--one with a mandolin and one with an accordion!

It was tons of fun and Kris flew in for it, which meant we had to rent an accordion from Alice who teaches accordion and you can bet her students have a good time.

Another of my events jobs had me petting an 800 lb. pig named Lola.

My brother Matt & his family came to visit and we had a good time catching up with Matt, Kate, & Asha. Uncle Randy and Asha acting all mature at a happy hour...the owner gave Asha some dough to play with.

Asha in the dustpan downtown. We went to the art museum but it was closed, so we played checkers at the Children's Library and went to the top floor of the Hyatt Regency where we met some German tourists and took the stairs down.

In other work-related news, the big construction box was finally removed from the airport! No more fountain, no more construction mess. No more people rolling their eyes at me when I have to push past them because they have blocked the only narrow entrance to the TOE. I'll miss my righteous indignation a bit.

I had my first lobster at Ocean Prime when a group was under their guarantee. Not bad. Better than crab. (The steak was better though).

Two Days After

Lately, I've been interested in the A&E show Hoarders., primarily because I live next door to some. After more than a year of consistent contact with neighborhood inspections along with several other neighbors who are fed up, significant progress has been made and the complaint regarding outdoor storage was closed two days ago.

No sooner was it closed than this trailer full of used tires rolled into the back yard! The sad part...this is the best this yard has looked in three years. Behold! The view from my kitchen window!

Here we go again.

Great Lyrics

I was really struck by these great lyrics this week:

The last remaining high leaves me low down and alone
-Justin Currie, "Gold Dust"



I knew a man a refugee
Survival was his art
All that he had valuable
He carried in his heart

-Sam Phillips, "Same Rain"

I love my job.

I just finished a long streak with no days off. I count 16, and because I am a contract worker for several companies, on some days, I wore three different uniforms racing from shift to shift. My little Honda became a makeshift studio apartment with polo shirts hanging from hooks, my makeup bag on the front seat, phone charger in the backpack, layers for every kind of weather (It's Colorado after all), and granola bars and bananas anywhere they wouldn't get smooshed. I downloaded a new app called Timesheet that lets me keep track of time spent on each project. Receipts were meticulously scanned with the cell phone the moment they were obtained. Clipboards were everywhere. I ran out of cell phone minutes.

The thing is...I don't mind at all.

Don't get me wrong. I'm so happy to be off this weekend and spend some time with Randy & Diego, and I slept a LOT on that first day off, but my job is cool. I am a people person and I get to interact with all kinds of people as well as see events and eat food that I could never afford.

Here are some highlights:

-One on one time with a retired civil engineer from Wolverhampton, England (where I just was in January).

-A free Rockies game with $25 in concessions credit.

-Seeing U2 not once, but TWICE, and getting paid to do it!!!

(a) Friday night, U2 gave a full dress rehearsal for the private jet company that supplies their jets and Special Olympic kids. I worked coordinating transportation for the jet company (and inadvertently got recruited to help coordinate for Broncos player Tim Tebow as well). In-between, I got to see all but the encore of U2's dress rehearsal with just a few hundred others.

(b) Saturday, I gave a city tour for a group of Venezuelans who had flown in for the U2 show. Actually, my translator was quite confident that he knew everything so I just let him give the tour and sat back waiting for questions he couldn't answer and telling the bus driver where to turn.

Afterwards, we went to Cherry Creek Mall where they shopped and I got paid to read a book, have lunch with Randy, and shop around myself. In the evening, we were given suite tickets to the U2 show to escort them to their seats and invited to join them there. Because of this, I gave Randy my ticket, which turned out to be just three rows outside the suite window. I spent the show hanging out with him, my co-workers, and back and forth to the suite to check on the group and grab a soda.

-Getting fed fantastic Italian food at Venice Restaurant, not once, or twice, but three nights in a row. Not every restaurant I do "dine-arounds" with is able to feed me so often I sit in a fancy restaurant in a dorky polo shirt sipping water because I cannot even afford a side salad in places like these! The assistant manager at Venice insisted on feeding me every course every night...calamari, bruschetta, bread, salad, pasta or salmon, tiramisu. Mmmmmm. And somehow, miraculously, I lost 5 pounds!!!

This was an especially good week, but often I find myself getting paid to mostly people-watch in the airport alongside my co-workers who are generally interesting and really fun, hanging out a museum, meeting people from all over the world, and learning more about Denver. It's really tough to beat.

So, with a few days off, I've sent out several invoices, and all there is left is to get paid and gear up for the next wave of conferences, meetings, events, and tourists. What's not to love?