NBC-10-Philadelphia-kimwolterman

Jim and I traveled to Los Angeles on New Year's Eve to ring in 2014 with our daughter as she was unable to come home for Christmas. Unlike last year when we visited her in January, the weather was perfect. We had sun every day, no rain at all and temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s. It almost made us want to live there. I say almost because I simply cannot handle the area traffic. Let alone there being lots of it, people cut in and out on the highways without signaling all the time. It seems so dangerous!

We arrived in time to take a cab to Katie's office, where we were able to meet her boss and many of her co-workers. It is fun to now be able to visualize her sitting at her desk. Everyone seems very nice. From there we went to her apartment to drop off our luggage, and then walked to a nearby Scottish restaurant for dinner. I love where she lives because you can walk to many different places and leave the car in the garage. The next morning, New Year's Day, we drove north to Ventura where we met my college friend Karen Smith and her husband for lunch. While they live in Washington, DC, the navy has transferred Mark to Ventura for a couple of years. It was so much fun to reminisce about our days at Iowa State.

Karen Smith and me

After lunch Jim, Katie and I boarded the Island Packers boat for a three hour tour (okay, it was three and a half hours, but most of you will know my reference to a three hour tour) of Channel Island National Park. The park encompasses five islands and the ocean that surrounds them. Officially this was a whale watching excursion, but we saw sea lions, dolphins, many birds and whales. We actually saw a humpback whale, which is unusual this time of year as they are normally further south on their migration to Mexico for the winter.

dolphins at play

humpback whale

whale tale

sea lion waves hello

sun sets on a great day

Katie had to work on Thursday, so Jim and I drove to work with her in the morning so that we could drop her off and use her car for the day.  We headed to Santa Monica beach, which was fairly uncrowded due to the early hour, and then down to Venice Beach with all of its uniqueness.

Santa Monica Pier

fitness, Santa Monica style

California sledding at Venice Beach

another glorious sunset in Venice

Friday after we dropped Katie off we went back to the Getty Center. We had gone here last January, but it was cold and rainy so we did not get to enjoy the gardens. I'm so glad we went back as it is absolutely beautiful!

Getty Center

Getty Center gardens

Jim and me

everyone's a star

After lunch at the Getty Center we headed over to the Getty Villa. From a beautiful, clear day we drove a few miles into cool fog. Weird. The villa is nice and its museums are interesting, but if I could only go to one of the Getty options, I would go to the Getty Center.

Getty Villa

Saturday we took it a little easy before making the two hour drive to Joshua Tree National Park. Located east of Los Angeles this 800,000 acre park is made up of two deserts. Obviously we should have arrived early in the day to see more of it, but what we were able to experience was really cool. We had asked the park ranger for the best spot to capture the sunset, and she definitely directed us to the right place.

Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua trees

Sun sets over the mountain

We had been touching base with home about the snow headed to St. Louis, so I wasn't surprised to find out that our flight home on Sunday had been cancelled. Unfortunately American left me a voice mail in the middle of the night so by the time I retrieved it on Sunday morning we had few options for rescheduling anything. They had booked us on a flight Monday night arriving in Dallas at 9:35 p.m. That didn't look too bad until we realized that the next flight for us didn't leave Dallas until 9:35 p.m. on Tuesday night! When I tried to call American I was informed there would be a two hour wait on hold. Yikes. No changes were allowed online at all. We decided to just go to the airport early on Monday and hope for the best. In the meantime, that left us with the opportunity to spend Sunday with Katie. We enjoyed a nice brunch in Glendale, walked around the outdoor mall in the area, and then drove the short distance to downtown so that Jim could see one of the urban parks in the area. We picked up brats for dinner and watched the season premier of Downton Abbey.

We drove to work with Katie Monday morning and then took a cab to the airport. The couple in line ahead of us had just returned from a 17 day cruise to the Panama Canal, and were trying to get back to St. Louis as well. I jokingly said that they would probably get the last two seats on the non-stop flight going out at 7:25 a.m. Tuesday morning. It turned out that they couldn't get any flight at all until Thursday! When we got up to the agent she was puzzled by the flights we had been given since they normally do not make you wait so long between flights. But she could not find any better alternative for us.

In Dallas we headed to a Comfort Inn near the airport for the night. Everyone on the shuttle bus had a horror story. The next morning my brother and his wife came to pick us up at the hotel, and we spent the day with them, my niece and my two great-nephews. That was the silver lining in the black snow cloud that was hovering over us.

Once we arrived back in St. Louis we were faced with clearing 12 inches of snow off the car - with no winter coats or boots! Luckily the shuttle bus driver helped us remove snow from behind the car so that we could get out. That was pretty nice considering it was nearly midnight and 16 degrees outside.

snow on our patio

What an interesting beginning to 2014. I wonder what the rest of the year will bring?

Andy and Megan made it safely to our house on December 23rd, and we celebrated with Andy's favorite meal of Imo's Pizza. It is a must-have when he comes to town, so we figured we would just get it out of the way. On Christmas Eve Jim and I got a workout in at the rec center before the day's festivities began. I made my traditional Italian beef for supper, followed by our new tradition of Cranberry Cosmopolitans while opening gifts. As I mentioned before, Katie was unable to come home due to lack of vacation days, so we did the next best thing. I put my Macbook on the entry foyer steps where she normally sits during our gift exchange, with a Cosmo next to the computer for a virtual toast. Through the miracle of Skype we set up the laptop and my iPad so that she could see us opening the presents and we, in turn, could watch her open her gifts. It amazes me that we could keep in contact with her for over two hours at absolutely no cost to anyone. Thank you, inventor of Skype! Below is a fun gift I received to commemorate my trip to Switzerland this year. I really need to find the connection between this Kubler family and mine!

Kubler Absinthe

MoBot Train

While the kids were here we made our annual trip to the flower and train show at the Missouri Botanical Garden. It was lovely as always, and surprisingly uncrowded on the day after Christmas. We also visited the Art Museum to see the new addition for the first time. While I am not a fan of the architecture it was interesting to see the new exhibition space. I particularly like the exhibit shown below that looked like a fabric quilt but was in fact made from liquor bottle caps. The interactive glass block exhibit is cool as well.

Jim on repeat

I was, however, very offended by this painting.


Jim and I fly out to Los Angeles tomorrow to bring in the New Year with Katie. Kirby will remain here with his favorite dog sitters though he always prefers to be with Jim. Speaking of Kirby, here is the gift I had made for Jim. He loved it, as you might imagine.

Kirby mug

Happy New Year to my readers. May 2014 be everything you hope for and desire!

Last Thursday we flew from Denver to Los Angeles to see our daughter. Our flight was a little late getting in, and it was raining when Katie picked us up at the airport. Since she lives in a studio apartment, we arranged for a place to stay through airbnb.com. It is an interesting website where you can find anything from a tee pee to a full house to rent. We located a one bedroom apartment behind a home in an area very close to where Katie lives. It was nice to have a kitchen where we could make a meal if we chose, and to have hot tea every morning. Plus we didn't have to listen to anyone above, below or next door to us. The one weird thing is that the bathroom was off the bedroom and in lieu of a door it had beads. Jim immediately dubbed it the beaded throne.

beaded throne

On Friday we went to the Getty Center, where it rained most of the day. It never rains in California? Girl, don't they warn ya...it pours, man it pours. The architecture at the Getty is really cool, and I imagine the gardens are amazing as well when not viewed from the shelter of an umbrella. Fortunately there are many museums to go into, so we didn't get too wet.

view from Getty Center

Getty Center

Saturday was shaping up to be a nice weather day, so we decided to drive to San Pedro to see the Point Fermin Lighthouse. It was built in 1874 and is a beautiful structure. We signed up for the 2:00 tour, and wandered around taking photos to pass the time. And watched the fog roll in. By the time we climbed to the top of the lighthouse you couldn't see squat. "I have never seen it like this!", exclaimed our tour guide. "Normally you can see all the way to Catalina Island, and there are usually a few whales down below." Bummer. We ate a late lunch at a biker bar in town, and that made for interesting people watching. When we arrived back in LA the weather was still beautiful there.

Point Fermin Lighthouse

Walker's Cafe

Sunday was also a nice day in LA. We set off to Griffith Park to see the observatory and take pictures of the infamous Hollywood sign. From there we drove to Angeles National Forest to see the San Gabriel Mountains. It was like driving in Colorado, with a two lane winding road and sheer drop offs. We stopped at the only restaurant in the park for another late lunch, and when we came out it had begun to sleet. "I've never seen it like this!", exclaimed a native. Of course you haven't, I thought to myself. We decided to go back to LA and the weather conditions worsened. The sleet turned to snow, which began to build up on the road. Great - slippery, snow covered two lane winding road with sheer drop offs. We slowly inched our way back to LA which was - you guessed it - sunny and dry.

observatory

Hollywood sign

San Gabriel Mountains

sunset in Los Angeles

Monday Katie came over for a last breakfast with us, and we waited for our taxi to take us to the airport. Katie did not have enough time to take us there and get to work on time. The driver called and said he was going to be late. "I have never seen the traffic like this!", he exclaimed. Of course you haven't, we all thought to ourselves. Nevertheless we made it to the airport in plenty of time, and arrived home safe and sound. To temperatures in the 60's. "I've never seen it like this!", I exclaimed.

I am back home from my adventures in Los Angeles. I spent the final few days with Katie picking out a couch and bar stools, setting up a bank account, lining up insurance, and shopping for the necessary items she will need to get by until her stuff can be shipped to her. She was also busy making contacts and lining up interviews. In a lot of ways it does not seem real that she is staying out there permanently. She has traveled so much during the past year that it felt to me like a temporary stop on the road we call life. The song "Wide Open Spaces" came on my iPod while I was with her, and I thought the lyrics were so poignant of my feelings.

I decided to book a flight to head home on Sunday. I went back and forth as I had heard the weather forecast in St. Louis. But I had only reserved my hotel room through Saturday night. I probably could have added another day, but quite frankly after 11 days I was ready to head home to Jim and my own bed. My flight was scheduled to leave at 12:25, so Katie dropped me off at the airport about 10:20. I checked my bag and printed out my boarding pass. My first clue to potential problems should have been that I wasn't charged for the bag. I attributed that to the fact that I booked my flight so late and paid an obscene price for it. The second clue was my boarding time, but I didn't even notice that. I just looked at the boarding pass long enough to ensure that it was Flight 818 to St. Louis. My bad!

About an hour went by before I checked my boarding pass again, and then I freaked out when it said that boarding was to begin at 3:40, with the flight departing at 4:10. Holy crap! I ran to check one of the boards, and sure enough the flight was delayed. After speaking with an American representative I found that due to bad weather in St. Louis on Saturday, many flights had been cancelled and it was balling everything up on Sunday. Bad weather on Sunday added to the problems, especially since the Midwest, Dallas and Chicago were all experiencing delays. Darn it! I should have gone with my gut and booked for Monday.

So I hung out at the airport all day, and mid-afternoon my flight disappeared from the board altogether. The American rep assured me it was because they had no room on the board and bumped our flight to add a different one on. Liar, liar, pants on fire. When I asked later, I was told that the gate had changed. When I went to the new gate, there was no mention of Flight 818 on the screen at the gate. I had to check with other passengers to make sure I was in the right place. Finally they 'fessed up that there was a mechanical problem with our plane, but they thought it could be fixed. The woman next to me said they were told the exact same story on Saturday. She was supposed to fly to St. Louis at 8:15 Saturday morning. They fed the passengers b.s. about delays, then a maintenance problem, then the fact that they thought they had a different plane to put them on, until finally at 9:00 Saturday night they told them they weren't going anywhere and put them on the Sunday 12:25 flight. So when the gate attendant said our plane could not be repaired but they thought they could get another plane for us, we did not hold out a lot of hope.

We finally began our taxi down the runway at around 7:00. We got a free snack on the plane, but only if you were smart enough to ask for it. They weren't offering, that's for sure. We arrived in St. Louis at 12:40 a.m. Poor Jim had to stay up to come and get me, and he had been on a challenging motorcycle trip all weekend. Next time I will listen to my gut.

We signed a lease on an apartment today. Woo, hoo! We went back to take a second look at the loft apartment. While it has some things that were not as nice as the first complex we looked at, the amount of space in the unit, the location of the apartment in the back of the complex, and the view simply outweigh the negatives. As it still needs to be cleaned up we went ahead and committed to it so that management will put a priority on getting it ready for occupancy. Katie can move in on Saturday. It seems funny to say "move in" when really all she has out here is one suitcase of clothes and a couple of bags of miscellaneous items. Should make the process pretty painless! Here is a picture of the interior before they had finished the cleaning process.


We did need to go pick out a bed because with the loft set up she can actually finally have a real bed. In the past at home as well as in Chicago she has used a trundle bed. That is one less big item we will need to ship from St. Louis. The bed will be delivered on Saturday afternoon. We also had to make arrangements for a refrigerator since the apartment did not come with one. I have to say that is the one thing that really didn't sit well with me. What kind of apartment doesn't provide a refrigerator? And what do you do with it when you move out? We decided to rent one for the time being, but it won't be delivered until Monday. The power will be turned on Friday, so that is helpful. The last item is to get the Internet set up with AT&T, which we should be able to handle tomorrow. We are feeling pretty good about where we're at right now.

Today we spent most of our time looking at apartments. At the first apartment complex we had an exceptionally nice man who showed us around the grounds. This place has four open studio apartments right now, so we got to see a variety. They were all the same in terms of layout, but definitely had different feels to them. The first one was on the ground level but a little below grade, so the window looked out into the window well. Granted it had plants in it, but it gave the unit a bit of a claustrophic feel. The second one was on the third floor and had a nice view of the hills. The only problem was that you have to look through a bunch of thick electrical wires to see them. It had much better lighting than the first apartment. The third unit had a patio, and I use the term loosely. You had the main door to enter the apartment, and then a second door (French style but a single door instead of double) that opened onto the patio. You could put a door mat on it, and that was about it. Definitely no patio furniture. It was also on the first floor. The fourth apartment, again on the first floor, actually had the main door and next to it a sliding patio door which opened onto a concrete patio, albeit a smallish one. They had one additional unit that is being renovated, which he also showed us. We didn't feel that for the additional money the few upgrades were worth the extra monthly rent.

We felt like we were on House Hunters. What, you call that a patio? Where are the stainless appliances? What about hardwood floors? Granite countertops? It was kind of funny. The second apartment building we looked at was right next door to the first, which was great since driving is a bear here and parking is next to impossible to find. This complex has only a one bedroom unit available and a loft unit. We quickly dismissed the one bedroom due to its location looking out over multiple units with tons of kids toys on the patios. But the loft unit...oh my goodness. It was nearly 200 square feet larger than the studios we looked at in the other complex. The windows look out again to the hills sans all the wires. It is in the back of the complex and the mounted police have their stables next door so you can see the horses. (Didn't smell them however, which is great.) The rent is comparable to the studios, but it feels so much more spacious. So this seems like a no brainer, right? Well, no utilities are included and it doesn't come with a refrigerator! What!

So we have made our list of pros and cons and don't have a clear winner. We will see a different complex Wednesday morning. It is more expensive, but it is a true one bedroom and has all the upgrades in it. It is also only ten minutes from Katie's potential employer, which is amazing.

Yesterday was the final day of long distance driving - hallelujah! The scenery has not been as interesting as I had anticipated it would be. There were a few areas that had some great rock formations and/or mountains, but for the most part we might as well have been driving through Kansas. But with less vegetation. The exits on Interstatw 40 are few and far between, so you really need to plan your gas and potty breaks. I can't even imagine trying to make the drive with small children. And the interstate is in terrible shape, in all the states we traveled through. I won't complain about the highway conditions in Missouri again.

Around noon we began looking for a place to eat. We finally saw an exit with a Dairy Queen, so I pulled off. Everyone else had the same idea, and the parking lot was packed! Plus gas at the nearby station (the only two things at this exit) was $4.89 per gallon! It is not even that high here in LA. Fortunately I didn't need to fuel up. Everywhere else we had paid $3.69 or $3.79, with the exception of $3.99 in Sedona where they were ripping off the tourists. Anyway, we decided to try to find food elsewhere, and drove another 60 miles before finding a town with some fast food restaurants.

When we were about 70 miles from LA the traffic picked up quite a bit. By the time we got on Highway 101 it was like rush hour in St. Louis. And this was a Saturday. I cannot imagine what it is like on a weekday. We finally got off on Sunset Boulevard and crept our way to the Comfort Inn. Pulling into their lot I quickly noticed three things - the motel rooms open to the exterior of the building (which I try to avoid for safety reasons), this was not a "secure" parking lot as I had been led to believe, and if the people hanging out in the lot were any indication of the area and people staying here, I don't want a room here. After consulting the Internet we realized that their are two Comfort Inns on Sunset. Who would have thunk it? That was the good news. The bad news was that we now had to turn around and go back through all the crappy traffic again to get to the correct hotel. Ugh!

But we finally made it and checked in with no problem. We do have a secure parking garage here, which is great. The Internet does not work in our room and our room faces Sunset, which is very noisy. So we will attempt to move to a room closer to the center of the hotel, and one that is not on Sunset. Since it is Sunday I imagine a number of people will be checking out today, so hopefully it won't be an issue.

Today we are going to look at apartments. Even if the offices are closed for Easter we figured we can get the lay of the land and perhaps find some that aren't listed on rent.com. It should be an interesting day.