Yesterday, Thursday, we drove from Kingman, AZ to Pasadena, CA. We're staying at Betty's older brother's house which is beautiful and sits in the hills above the Rose Bowl.
On the way we took another Route 66 side trip through the Mojave Desert. It was hot and desolate with several old abandoned small towns. However, one town, Amboy, is making a come back of sorts. The whole town, small as it is, was bought on E-Bay by a business man. He is slowly trying to restore it. He has the general store and gas station done and is working on the restaurant (Roys) and motel.
Hi, from Kingman, Arizona. Kingman is a working class town with a small Italian restaurant named Strombolis - and it's food is good.
We left Corrales early this morning - 6:00 AM to beat the morning rush hour traffic. Having been to the Grand Canyon several times, the drive to Flagstaff, Arizona was old hat for us. However, once we got past Flagstaff, everything became new.
You know you're in Arizona when the rest area has this sign...
We stopped at a small store to get some gas and they had some neat metal sculpture in front. If we had been in our truck instead of our convertible, I would have been tempted to buy this metal horse...
This is a great time of year. The late summer wild flowers are all in bloom and the yellow color was everywhere along with the brown mesas, fluffy white clouds and deep blue skies...
Half way between Flagstaff and Kingman, we decided to take a side trip along an 86-mile stretch of the original Route 66.
It's probably one of the few places where you can still see Burma Shave poems...
We went through several small towns that probably haven't changed much since the glory days of the Mother Road. One in particular was Hackberry, Arizona and the Hackberry General Store. It was a neat and very unusual place and I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...
Today was a good first day for our trip. We drove a total of 504 miles. Tomorrow we head for California. Hopefully, it will not have gone into bankruptcy and the doors to the state will still be open ;)
(Update: We just finished watching New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez give her speech at the GOP convention and she did a fantastic job. Well done, Gov.)
We leave Wednesday morning for a driving trip to the West Coast.
We're driving to Pasadena where we'll spend three nights staying at the home of Betty's older brother (he's in Massachusetts celebrating the birth of his newest grandson). We plan to do the Hollywood tourist scene.
Then we'll drive up the coast highway to San Francisco for three nights. One day we'll do a walking tour of Fisherman's Wharf, Ghiardelli Square, etc. The next day will be a driving trip to Golden Gate park, across the GG bridge, the Marin Headlands and dinner with a Navy friend who lives in Mill Valley (where M.A.S.H.s BJ lived).
After San Fran, well drive up the Northern California coast highway to our blogging friends TJ and Mark who have a cattle ranch. We'll spend three nights with them and TJ has already promised us a steak dinner -- yummm!
Following our visit with them we'll drive up the Oregon coast highway to Hillsboro, a suburb of Portland for three nights to visit with friends from our church here who are starting a new church there.
From Hillsboro we'll drive East to Pendleton, Oregon for the Pendleton Roundup, one of the three oldest, major rodeos - Calgary Stampede, Cheyenne Frontier Days and Pendleton Roundup. Pendleton is also home to Pendleton Wool products. Hopefully they will have an outlet store.
Then we'll drive to Boise, Idaho for three nights. One of the attractions in Boise is a Cabellas store. I'm a big Cabellas fan.
From Boise, we'll drive down through Utah and spend one night in Orem which is South of Salt Lake City.
The next day we'll drive down to Zion National Park for three nights. Then on to Bryce Canyon National Park for two nights and finally to Moab for three nights to see Canyonlands National Park (and possibly Arches National Park).
We'll stop at Durango, Colorado for one night on the way home.
It will be a long trip, but we're looking forward to seeing as much of God's creation as we can and visiting with good friends.
I'll try to do posts as we go along. You can also check our photo site to see all of our photos: http://danandbetty.smugmug.com
As most of you know, Betty and I are working with Morgunn and Sugar using the things we learned at our recent riding lessons with Jennifer Bauer in Tennessee.
One principle we're learning is how important freedom is in our relationship with our horses. Freedom doesn't mean the horse gets to do whatever it wants. That's license, not freedom. We're still the leaders in our relationship.
The freedom I'm talking about is the freedom for the horse to find his way when we give a cue - to learn to do the right thing or to make a mistake without the fear of punishment. The right thing brings relaxation and softness.
Freedom is such an important concept in all our lives.
Just as with the horses, there is a real difference between license and freedom. None of us have the right to do anything we want. We can't steal, murder, lie, commit fraud, cause injury to someone else, etc., without consequences.
Freedom is the ability to choose to do those things that bring us into a right alignment in our lives - a right alignment with God, with our spouse, our kids, our friends, our co-workers - and a right alignment within ourselves where we are consistent with our thoughts, attitudes and actions. Another word for that consistency within ourselves is integrity.
The opposite of freedom is slavery.
Unfortunately, there is still human slavery in the world. However, the choices we make can put us into slavery - slavery to addictions, slavery to work, slavery to consumerism, slavery to government - you name it.
There's an old joke about a pastor doing a children's sermon with all the kids at the front of the church. He was talking about God's creation and how he created all the animals. He asked them, "What animal is gray, furry, has a long tail, climbs in trees and eats nuts?" One kid raised his hand and said, "Jesus." The pastor, somewhat startled asked him, "Why Jesus?" The little boy answered, "I know it sounds like a squirrel, but you always say the real answer is Jesus."
When it comes to true freedom, the answer really is Jesus.
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1)
The basis for a good joke or cartoon is an element of truth. I don't know about you, but there has been many a night when this has been true in our home.
Last Saturday night, Galloping Grace Youth Ranch (GGYR) held its third annual Dinner and Auction at the Santa Ana Star Center. The theme this year was a County Fair.
Here's a video overview of the night that includes a pregnant cow, hundreds of people, a petting zoo with ducks, chickens, rabbits, goats, miniature goats and miniature horses (all from the ranch), a silent auction, a live auction and good old-fashioned country music.
However, the most exciting event took place before the dinner and auction started. Max asked Betty and me to use our small horse trailer to get the animals for the petting zoo from the ranch to the arena. This included two miniature horses, two full-size goats and two miniature goats.
With the help of our good friends, Laura and Jerry Burton, we were able to get them into the trailer at the ranch. However, we had a little excitement.
Betty and Laura were getting the full-size goats from their pens on a lead line. As they were taking them out the pen gate, the two miniature goats made a mad dash out the gate. Betty, with one full-size goat in one hand managed to grab the collar of one miniature goat. Laura did the same with the collar of the other miniature goat.
There they both were, being pulled in different directions with a full-size goat in one hand and a miniature goat in the other.
I was close and was able to grab the lead lines of the full-size goats so they could get the miniature goats back into the pen and hook up their lead lines. With a little control back, we were able to get them over to the trailer and loaded with the miniature horses.
Once in the trailer we had to unhook their lead lines so they wouldn't get all tangled up in the ropes while we made the trip to the arena.
At the arena, we had to organize an orderly way to rehook the lead lines and get the various animals out of the trailer and into the arena. Laura volunteered to get into the cramped trailer with the six animals, get them hooked up and coordinate getting them out of the trailer in an orderly way.
Here's a video of that amazing process. There was a thunderstorm close so there's a significant amount of wind noise, but I think you can still appreciate what was done. I suspect military landings such as Normandy didn't have any more coordinated planning.
All in all, a fun and exciting night for all and a successful fundraiser for the Youth Ranch.
One of the things Betty and I are learning about ourselves and our horses is the idea of feel. There are plenty of definitions of feel depending on the horse person you ask.
For us, feel is a matter of we and the horses listening to each other - physically, emotionally and spiritually -and finding a place where we can work together.
One of the things we finding out is that what we offer the horse we get back from them. If we offer peace, calm, softness, relaxation, confidence then we get the same back.
If we offer frustration, confusion, tenseness, anxiety then we get the same back.
As a Christian I believe that applies to my relationships with people God brings to my path. If I offer love, acceptance, peace, calm to others I often get the same back from them. If I offer anxiety, frustration, anger, tenseness then I get that back as well.
The difference between horses and people is consistency. Whatever you offer to horses you almost always get the same back from all horses with just a few exceptions.
However, people aren't as consistent as horses. I can offer all kinds things to different people and in some I will get the same back - but not as consistently as horses. Sometimes I can offer love, acceptance, etc. and I get in return tenseness, anger, etc. back.
I caught up with Betty again. Her birthday is in early May and on all of our important documents - our marriage license and the birth certificates for both our boys - she's shown as one year older than me because we were married and they were born during that three month period between our birthdays. You gotta love these older women.
67. Sixty-seven. It's a strange number of years. It just seems odd.
With the exception of Betty's younger brother Jim, my sister and her brother and sister are all 70 or older. And they all look pretty good. We're even talking about the things we want to do by the time we turn 70. At one time in my life 70 sounded so old, but that's no longer the case. I guess it's all a matter of perspective.
Not to sound morbid, but I figure at most I have 16 or so more years on this earth. All of the men in my family died in their early 80's. Knowing that actually gives life a more delicious meaning to every single day.
The Bible says my days are numbered and only God knows that number. Each day is precious and I want to savor every single day he has left for me.
Yesterday was one of those days to savor. We had a great session with the horses yesterday morning. Sugar did well and, more importantly, Betty had her best day with Morgunn. They worked well together. She's making good progress with him. As with most marriages, when she's happy I'm happy.
So, happy birthday me. You/I don't look 67. You/I don't look a day over 66. You/I look pretty good for your/my age.
We're heading home today from a great visit with our kids and grandkids in Fort Collins, Colorado.
I'll leave you with this Monday Video. Listen as a man who has lived the American dream talks about it - and worries about it for his kids and grandkids.
The very first McDonalds I ever saw was in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1963. It was one of the original McDs with the golden arches. It was strictly carry out and all you could get was a hamburger with ketchup on it. Kind of like the original Model-T cars which you could get in any color as long as it was black.
Our plan for watching the kids here in Fort Collins is to do something every day that will get us out of the house. Marie has been our activity planner and she suggested we go to a local McDonalds just up the road from where they lived. This is the first time I've been in a McDonalds in many a year.
McDonalds today are a far cry from that original McDonalds in Knoxville. It was a chrome and polish and had a humongous play area for the kids which is the attaction for Juliet and Leah. And the menu has come a long way from the Model-T menu of years past.
Here are a few pictures of the girls at play at McDonalds. No pictures of the food - sorry.
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