It’s Green for a Reason

June 6, 2021

This morning we set off to play a round of golf at Holiday Hills Resort and Golf Club. However, we had a rocky start due to a slight phone mishap. Actually it was a big mishap. Don realized while we were driving out of the RV park that he was missing his phone. Thinking that he had left it on the picnic table, he looped around discovering that it wasn’t on the table but actually on the driveway. Needless to say, even an Otterbox case can’t prevent a crushing conclusion when a phone is run over by a ¾ ton truck! 

Thinking we could contemplate Don’s phone dilemma over 18 holes, we continued on. It  was an overcast day but not cold. Surprisingly for a Sunday, the golf course wasn’t busy and no one was behind us which made for relaxing golf. Karen and I shared a cart which was even more enjoyable! Unfortunately, a downpour of rain hit us just after hole #4. Since there was no lighting, we tried to play through it but it was raining buckets so we ended up back at the clubhouse to wait it out. This gave Don time to search the Internet (on my phone), locate a Verizon store down the road and arrange  for a new phone to be picked up on our travels the next day. “I wanted a new phone anyway” was Don’s final remarks about the situation. 

The rain finally let up and we resumed our game. It was sunny skies again until it wasn’t and we were dumped on again at hole #12. This time it was short lived and we were able to finally finish after 5 and a half hours! To give you an idea of how much it rained, at one point we had to wait for a turtle to cross the fairway! I have never seen that before!

Later that evening, Karen and Gary drove us out to the other part of Branson where all of the venues are for the various music shows and all of the adventure parks you can imagine. I have heard someone describe Branson as the Christian Las Vegas and I think it is quite accurate. The shows are wholesome and there is no gambling but I could see families dropping a bundle on all of the attractions offered for kids. 

A relaxing evening next the the lake wrapped up a fun yet wet day.

The lakeview from our front window.

Soggy golf!

All smiles because at least it’s not cold!

Ambling across the fairway!

A misty lake at night.

Oops!

Moonshine over Branson

June 5, 2021

This morning we pulled out of the KOA at 6:07am! An absolute record for the earliest start for the Ostwalds! My motivation was that we were stopping up the road at Starbucks - not just for a cup of daily motivation but also for a Kansas mug. I try to collect them wherever we go and had not yet added a Kansas cup to my collection. With coffee and mug secured, off to Missouri we went.

Missouri is very green. And, unlike Colorado and Kansas, trees line the sides of the highway so you can’t see much beyond them. Our early start today was so that we would arrive in Springfield, Missouri before 2pm. We had tickets to enter the Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium at 2pm. We made it in good time and were able to have lunch in the parking lot. That is a great thing about trailers, you always have your lunch and table with you!

The Wonders and Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium was created and funded by Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro shops. Of course the museum is connected to a very large Bass Pro shop which we had to visit as well! The museum and aquarium covers 350,000 square feet with around 35,000 animals, although most of them are dead(!) There were impressive displays and encouraged animal and land conservation but this was a little contradictory since there was so much taxidermy. There were live fish in the 3 story fish tank and one highlight was the playful penguins. All in all we were glad we stopped and clocked an impressive number of steps on our pedometers.

Branson was just a short 40 minute drive and we were pleasantly surprised to have an RV spot right next to Lake Taneycomo. This lake is actually a reservoir on the White river. It is not very wide but it flows through the historic Branson downtown area. We easily walked to the historic downtown, ate outside by the river, perused through the infamous Dick’s 5&10 and did a little moonshine tasting! 

A very unique boat on Lake Taneycomo!

Not quite sure what this is all about!?

Moonshine tasting - none of us made it to #14!

Dinner along Lake Taneycomo.

We’re Off!

June 4, 2021

Today we started our adventure in the new 5th wheel that we purchased last November after our beloved Tajma-Haul succumbed to the East Troublesome fire. Our first adventure in the Tajma-Haul was with our friends, Gary and Karen, exploring all 5 National Parks in Utah. So it was fitting that we go on our first adventure in the Tajma-Haul #2 with Gary and Karen. 

Our journey this time includes a visit to Branson, Missouri and then on to Arkansas where Don and Gary will test the fishing waters and Karen and I will explore. 

Today was spent driving to Salina, Kansas. Our friends planned on leaving at 6am and so Don planned that as well. I laughed. We actually ventured forth  at 7:29am which is pretty much a record for us. The heart wrenching part of the day was leaving the dogs behind. We decided against taking the dogs since we weren’t planning dog friendly activities so they would have been left in the trailer most of the time. The mournful face of little Bear staring at me through the fence as we pulled away just about did me in! Fortunately, a panicked  text to my friend Kim resulted in her and daughter Rachel driving to our house to comfort Maggie and Bear for a little while before “manny” Alex got off work.

We made it to Salina without any hiccups and enjoyed a nice happy hour and dinner at the campsite. The mosquitos had a nice feast as well but nothing that a little deet with the wine couldn’t handle!

Tomorrow...Branson!

Tolerance

Sometimes you learn lessons when you least expect it. I often turn on the TV for background noise to keep me company or when I have to do tedious household tasks so this weekend I tuned into season 1 of Queer Eye on Netflix. My kids have often raved about it so I thought I would check it out (Late to the party- I know!). I like makeover shows, be it a person or house but was surprised to find out that this show is much, much more. 

The Fab 5 on the show are men who specialize in different aspects of a makeover- fashion, hair, interior, culture, and cooking and are all openly gay. Their mission is to help people, gay or straight, who need a redo. Queer Eye can be light hearted and funny but also delves into some deep emotional issues and the big subject of tolerance. One show in particular was a makeover for a man who was white, straight, and a strong Republican cop in Georgia. Neither the Fab 5 or the man knew what to make of each other but by the end of the show they were able to overcome their blatant differences and accept each other as human beings and actually became friends in the process.

It finally hit me after a few shows that the real mission of the Fab 5 is to put themselves out there and make a connection with people who normally would not accept and/or acknowledge them and who, quite frankly, they wouldn’t go out of their way to be around either. The result of every show is that deep down we all just want to be loved. Tolerance at its best. 

Coincidentally, I just finished Michelle Obama’s autobiography, Becoming. Her charge at the end is, “Let’s invite one another in. Maybe then we can begin to fear less, to make fewer wrong assumptions, to let go of biases and stereotypes that unnecessarily divide us. Maybe we can better embrace the ways we are the same.” 

Tolerance.

Step Up to Writing

Those of you in the elementary education world recognize my title, Step Up to Writing as a writing instruction curriculum that is used by some schools. No, I'm not going to blog today about teaching writing to students but more about teaching myself to write.

In 5th grade, my teacher, Mrs. Madsen was so impressed with my story entitled, The Mother's Day Present, that she sent it to the Fun Publishing Company and it was printed in a 1974 edition of I Got An Idea!... Right then and there an author seed was planted. The seed as been slow to flourish so I decided that it was time to do some gardening to help it along and see how it grows.

My first step last year was to join the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators organization to get me motivated. Because of this, I found out about the Rocky Mountain Chapter's Spring Writing Conference which I attended yesterday. As I drove to Boulder, I felt uneasy about attending the conference and that I would be truly out of my element but was pleasantly surprised with the positivity and welcoming of the others who attended. It was a full day of seminars given by the conference faculty which was comprised of authors, agents and editors. I learned a tremendous amount about the process and was energized and motivated to continue to try to improve my writing ability. While there I ran into an old friend and met a new friend, both of whom live near me and we decided to form a critique group. This group will be  important to keep me accountable and moving forward.

My second step is writing this blog to publicly announce my dream of publishing a book, cataloging it, slapping a call number on it and seeing it on my library shelf! A bonus would be seeing someone actually check it out and read it! Too many years have gone by with the seed laying dormant. Now is the time for me to garden. It is Spring after all!

                                          Where it all began.....

                                          Not the best school picture for my debut!

                                         Great authors like Julie Danneberg were in attendance!

Las Vegas

Las Vegas. I have been here at least 5 times previously, the first time in the early 80’s. My husband and I were newlyweds and living in Southern California. We decided to trek across the desert in his Datsun to visit this oasis in the desert. Since the air conditioning in the car was on the fritz, we drove with the windows down which also made it easier to propel the sunflower seed shells out along the way but also attracted a lot of desert sand. Needless to say, by the time we glided into the Bally’s circle drive,( one of the classier hotels at that time) you can only imagine the pleasure the valet felt as he settled into the sweaty, sandy, seed speckled driver’s seat to park the car for the new arrivals! 

We had pre-purchased some kind of package with our hotel reservations which included tickets to the popular Jubilee show. Yep, jubilee is exactly what I felt as we realized that our tickets were first row center next to the stage. It was an eye opening performance for the two Las Vegas newbies that’s for sure. It was clear that the costume budgeting formula was this: if the girl had the small headdress, there was money for the dress but the girls who were issued the large headdresses could not be provided with dresses. Interesting. 

We returned a few times while living in California for various conferences. When our son Alex was not even a year old, he and Don joined me for the Boy Scouts of America conference that I needed to attend. I was one of the few female Field Executives in the organization so Don was the only male on the spouse tours. He didn’t mind, especially when they went backstage of, you guessed it, the Jubliee show. A handsome twenty something male with a baby in the backpack was quite the attraction for the showgirls. (Don assured me he only talked to the ones with small headdresses!) 

Actually, I think that was the same Las Vegas trip that Alex had his first haircut in the hotel room. A well meaning but at the time I thought to be heartless lady in the buffet line, called my beautiful boy a girl and then followed up with “he needs a haircut!” His locks are in a Las Vegas Hilton envelope somewhere. 

After 20 some years we made our way back to Las Vegas again and were shocked at the growth in the number of hotels and buffet prices! It is no longer a cheap vacation. An Uber driver ( a somewhat legit source) explained that the change came with the arrival of the Bellagio. Now hotels make most of their money on the restaurants and entertainment. And there is money and places to spend your money everywhere. Designer boutiques are more common than Starbucks - names I never even knew that I was supposed to have in my closet. There are so many high end labels passing me in the hallway, I felt like going to Walmart just to be different! 

Las Vegas is still it’s own over the top, glitzy, raunchy, wild, loud self where adults can leave their boring daily selves for awhile and have fun. Recess for big people. And like all recesses, they must come to an end. Thanks Las Vegas for the great time and now I have to go home and rest!

                                          Terrific view from our room at the Bellagio

                                          Talk about views! This is a birds eye of Vegas on the
                                          High Roller

                                          Flamingos at the Flamingo...go figure!

                                          Bally's is not so glamorous anymore....

                                          Year of the Pig display at the Bellagio.

                                          Now that's a S'more!

                                           Enjoyed the funny Piff the Magic Dragon show and snuggled with Mr.                                                  Piffles (the dog, not the comedian!)

Magical Night in Wonderland

Last night Don, Alex and I participated in the Eat, Ski and Be Merry fundraiser for the Summit Nordic Ski Club. We were invited by Don's sister, Shelly and husband and eagerly accepted so we could support our nephew Gray and his Cross Country team. My mother in law joined us although she had never snowshoed, let alone in the dark - what a sport!

 The event took place at the Frisco Nordic Center and as we set off, I was surprised at how dark it was (that's the city girl in me!). But that made it truly magical. The path was lit by luminaries made of ice and sparkling lights in the trees. We skied and snowshoed down the snowy trail to the first stop where hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps were served around a blazing campfire. OK, I thought, this is my kind of exercise! Snapping back into our skis, we continued on through the woods until we got to the second stop. Meat and cheese kabobs and hot spiced wine. Wow!

As we headed off to the final station, the fireworks began! Because of the summer drought conditions, Breckenridge cancelled their fireworks show and decided, much to our delight, to shoot them off last night. I can't tell you how beautiful they were, glistening over the snow and pine trees while we had unobscured views while skiing in the dark! As if this wasn't enough we enjoyed beer and Swedish meatballs at the last stop.

The final destination was the lodge where soup was served. I had no idea that this event was going to be so much fun. It was winter and dark and snowy and cold which is usually a combination that I avoid at all costs but I am so glad that I put my big girl snow pants on and went!