A Dam Good Time in Nevada

One final week of vacation, and the man leaving for Africa the next week.  We needed a trip that did not require a whole lot of preparation or thought.   We needed to veg.  Vegas.  The man had never been.  I emailed the transplanted NY cousins to inquire about “hotel availability”.   They said yes.  We said yes. Off we go.

Early Sunday morning flight and we actually got First class! They serve the same breakfast they’ve been serving for years.  Cheese omelet, tasty fresh fruit and yogurt, horrible sausage and ham, and that potato-spinach thing.   I love spinach, and potatoes too, but this Continental Combo is truly not fine dining.

On arrival we take the journey to baggage claim. Carrousel #6, and we wait.  And wait…And wait some more.  Then a skycap says the Houston bags are OUT on carousel #10.  Gee, thanks for letting the passengers know!   Off to the car rental yard and we are offered a variety of makes and models.  I choose the WHITE car.  It is 100o + every day.  I will be the designated driver. With the man giving directions, we stand a better chance of actually leaving the airport than when *I* am the navigator. Heh.  I plugged in the GPS and we are off to the LAS Burbs. 

Cousins K1 and K2 are both home and we catch up and regroup. K2 soon off to work and with tour book in hand Man and I head to the nearby Red Rock Canyon. When I say burbs, I mean there is nothing behind their house except a dug out quarry and the mountains. 

Hot, dry, desolate. First stop is the visitor’s center. Nicely done with info, overlooks, artwork and “touch” tables. 

Then the scenic drive. Thirteen miles of overlooks. Hmmm…most of these overlooks over look…red rocks.  Mountain layers with varying shades of red.  Then we start to see them. Zombies.  More specifically, Rasta Zombies!  I think they are yucca plants, but they sure look like Zombies coming to get us!  Rows and rows of them with outstretched limbs reaching out to snare us.  

We watch an old geezer couple smoking while reading the sign that says NO SMOKING.  Amazing.  Towards the end of the route, we veer off to some tables for a picnic lunch before heading home.

We were back at the house in time for dinner with K2. Evening spent talking about and watching old movies. The Cousins are most knowledgeable, and this is Man’s favorite pastime.   They get along well.

Day 2 and we head to The Strip.  I had already noted stops I wanted to make and we parked mid-way.  First stop is the Bellagio. We are just in time to see the fountains.  Inside is the beautiful Dale Chihuly ceiling display.  I love his work.  We wander the casino and I find another, smaller, Chihuly!  Photo Op time.  The lobby attraction is birds in a garden setting.  Next stop Caesar’s Palace and the search for David. He is deep in the labyrinth of rooms, but we find his nakedness and take our pix.

Walking the strip is an interesting adventure.  You can’t really get THERE from HERE. Walking involves side treks up stairs and escalators (if we are lucky), detours into casinos and shopping areas and street crossings.  This is all done while dodging those passing out cards for various shows of …disreputable content.  The man gave up and started taking these cards. We ended up with a large collection of pictures of naked women.

Lunch at the Burger Bar near the Mandalay Bay.  I let the man in on a few bits of my past visits to LAS, when I stayed at the Mandalay and spent hours in the lobby outside the House of Blues.  Nevermind.  No, you don’t need to know what I did back then.   Go read those blogs.  LOL  Sadly I declined to see Rancid that night as I THOUGHT I would see them two weeks later at home on the Honda Civic tour.  Too bad my town was one of the stops they DIDN’T make.   *sad sigh* 

Visit to NYNY, Paris, and the Grand Canal shops. Saw most of the Mirage Volcano before we headed home for the night.

Day 3  Early start to Boulder, NV, home to Hoover Dam.  We opt for the free parking higher up. The dam is immense. When you see it in the scale of things, like a car driving across the top, or looking down, you can feel it.

I put on my borrowed hat (from K2) …FUBAR… and off we hike down to the visitor’s center.  We decide on the full tour. First an historical movie.  Interesting information on the dam project and how it was built. Then the Dam Tour.

We must pass the metal detectors.  Guard notices my hat and asks if that is true.  I grin at him. First stop is the Turbine Room, with huge equipment to move them as needed.  The guide announces that we may take as many Dam Photos as we want. Then…Inward.   Yes, we are actually inside the Dam Wall.   On the face of the dam, you can see four vents.  These bring air into the interior passageways of the dam.  One at a time we walk the corridor to the vent.  This is worth what we paid to get in! How strange to look OUT these vents.   I stuck my arm out and waved.  Wonder if anyone noticed.

Look closely...the VENTS. Just under that line.

Looking OUT the vents.

 We walked along the bridge into Arizona.  After a bit more wandering we headed back. Dinner out with K1 and then lounging in the hot tub and pool, sipping wine. On a beautiful full moon night.

Short and sweet, this has been a great getaway for both of us.  Now, back to the real damn world.

Slipaway to Seattle

I love reading a book where I LIKE the characters, and the story is thrilling enough to keep it interesting but still real.  The ending has me on the edge of my figurative seat, and in the denouement, the bad guys get it, and the wounded recover.  This description fits Ridley Pearson’s books.  I especially like his Seattle PD's Lieutenant Lou Boldt.   So when I needed a quick get away on my vacation, I naturally thought of Seattle.

Seattle is difficult to get to on a space available stand-by ticket.  Since this is the only way I fly these days, I risked it.  I bought the Frommer’s Seattle book.  I prefer these guides with include good tips and map.  Using the book and Expedia I chose the 

Hotel 1000

Guestrooms offer a soothing sanctuary for the weary traveler and feature two-person pedestal tubs with dramatic ceiling mounted water fillers. Floating frosted glass walls surround generous, limestone tiled walk-in showers. Ok I’m sold.   Yes it was a splurge for us, but it was centrally located and the staff were very nice.  We could have checked in at 10am, but opted for a room on a higher floor, meaning with a view, at 4pm.  We left our bags and our phone number, and wandered off. 

First stop: Lunch at Ivar’s clam bar.  I am not a seafood fanatic but the chowder was superb.  Small portions, but delicious. The seagulls squawked while we ate.  I held some fries in my fingers and the gulls grabbed. 

The drizzle is steady, but not enough to open the umbrella. My Peruvian Llama hat protected me. Walk to Pioneer Place for the 2pm Underground tour.  Interesting. You roam the subterranean passages that once were the main roadways and first-floor storefronts of old downtown Seattle.  After the fire the city built retaining walls, eight feet or higher, on either side of the old streets, filled in the space between the walls, and paved over the fill to effectively raise the streets, making them one story higher than the old sidewalks that still ran alongside them. This was to prevent the constant tidal flooding.  I try to fathom the imagery of walls built over salt flats and rising tides and people clambering over them in ladders while holding their purchases. 

 Next the Klondike Museum.   Story of my life… I spin the wheel and just miss making it rich!  Great photos of an era of Americana. Then our room is ready so we regrouped. Nice room, not so much of a view, but then we usually only come back after dark. 

 

Off to Pike Place Market.  At this time of the evening most of the stalls are closing down, but the flowers are still beautiful.  I wish I could take some home with me.  Here is the very first Starbucks, looking worn and weary but still with a steady stream of customers.  I was more interested in Piroshky Piroshky, but alas…they were sold out of all the items we wanted for a snack.  I suggested we return for breakfast. Then I found the ABC Gum wall. The man said “Ewww gross!”  Yes I added my small piece.  Specifically it was gum purchased in Korea last summer and still I my travel backpack.  How international is that?

We continued wandering along the overlook to watch activity along the waterfront.   In darkness we returned to our hotel, noting the bright lights of the Taboo Adult Video like a beacon in the night to guide us home.  Between the hotel doors and XXX is theAddress: Boka Restaurant.  I would def try it, but not tonight.  The “lambwich” sounded yummy.    Inside, our room was ready for us with a waterfall screensaver on the TV and two chocolates on the turned down bed. 

We chose this hotel for its unusual bathtub review.  Something different. This was a good choice.  It is a very short walk from anything, even if some of this walking is steep hills.  The concierge was excellent, the staff helpful and very friendly.  When we left our umbrella in the room, there is a rack to borrow.  My only complaint is the shampoo and bath gel.  It is abundant, but very harsh.  

Dinner decisions were upon us.  Man had a Food Magazine and I had the tour book and we compared reviews. Sadly several of the places we wanted to try were CLOSED for dinner!  As it was after 7PM, we headed to The Pike Brewing Company.  Good food and way too many beers to choose from.  Slow walk in the drizzle back to our room where the bed called to me.

A quiet place.

 Next day we were off to the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks, built in 1911 and often nicknamed the Ballard Locks, provides a link for boats between the salt water of Puget Sound and the fresh water of the Ship Canal, which connects eastward to Lake Union and Lake Washington.

The locks also see an estimated half million salmon and trout make the journey from saltwater to fresh each year with the help of a nearby fish ladder. We are here at the wrong time of year for the fish but there is one single guy swimming for our viewing pleasure. I wondered if he was hired for the job. :-) We wandered a bit through the 7-acre Carl English Jr. Botanic Garden. 

Paleo People

Then off to the ferry dock and a 35minute trip to Bainbridge Island. We stood watching the land recede and then moved to watch it get closer.  The wind blew and the sun actually shined on us. On shore we wandered around but found not much of interest except the Stone Men at the marina and an old VW Beetle. All this wandering brought out the hunger and once again we tried clam chowder, this time at Doc's Marina Grill.  Once again it was good. On the way back to the ferry dock I spotted a handyman working and tried to get him to come work for me.  No luck…

The ride back was quiet as we sat inside and I wrote out postcards.  The ferry was empty. So WHY did the LOUD family have to sit in the NEXT BENCH BEHIND ME???   Up I got and moved to the other side.   Geeeez, they do seem to find me.  The man just laughs at me and ignores things like this. 

For the second night we regrouped in our room and looked for a place to eat dinner.  We finally asked the concierge and decided on pizza.  Serious Pie was a short walk away and we grabbed an umbrella and headed out.  Personally, it was overpriced for the small pie they served. A bit upscale for these New York pizza lovers. 

Plans of sharing that bathtub and a bottle of wine disintegrated as we flopped on the bed, exhausted.  We made a quick review of tomorrow’s touring plans and headed off to Z-land.

Next morning I checked our 11pm flight to find that it was already full!  Yikes!  The best laid plans… We need to pack, find breakfast, and head to the airport.  So many things left unseen. 

Looks  like Seattle is still on my list of Paces to See.

 Like a ship on the sea, a book can take you to far away places.

Old Dog Learns New Tricks!

I admit it.  My only form of exercise is playing computer card games. I get some good wrist action going some days.  And I walk.  I can walk for hours in a city like San Francisco and I like to walk in the neighborhood.  But run?  Not me.  Not even half a block.  I have no lung power.  I have no stamina.

I tried a gym a few years ago and even hired a personal trainer.  She was very good and had me working hard.  Trouble is, I never got any better.   If I had to run around the building, it was just as hard today as the last time.  And the workouts were boring.   Day after day, same thing.  Same machines.  Same routine.  The worst part was my lack of enthusiasm.   I hated going there and I never really pushed myself.  Tired today?  Oh well.  Let’s walk on the treadmill and be done with it.  If my trainer was counting down reps, and I was struggling, it went like this.  “Ten, nine, eight, two, one.” 

Last summer my husband, AKA the man, joined an exercise program.  He came home drenched with sweat and dead tired.  He watched videos on line.  He went faithfully every week day and some weekends. I called it his new religion.  *I* totally ignored what he was doing.   Then one day I went to watch a Saturday open house demonstration.  Interesting.  The man is NOT a large guy, but he lost TWO belt notches over the course of several months. 

I knew I needed to get my body into shape.  I wasn’t getting any younger! Ok, I am OLD.  The half century mark is long passed.  It wasn’t going to get any easier. I had twenty “mom years” of extra weight on me. Without telling the man, I e-mailed the gym owner to ask if he accepted “wimps”.   He replied that I would get two free workouts.  I went.

I call it low key-high intensity.  The first day Justin showed me many of the basic movements required.  My body began screaming at me.  “WHAT THE #*&% ARE YOU DOING TO ME?”  I barely made it through the session. My body rebelled.  The next day I made it through the routine before being sick.  Yup.  Our bodies will let us know when we have overworked them. Was I nuts the WANT to do this?  Apparently so, because I returned.  So what is this program that has lured us in?  CrossFit.

CrossFit is a strength and conditioning brand. Its purpose is functional fitness. Clients run, jump rope, do pushups, and carry or pull odd objects. They frequently move large loads quickly over long distances. We are taught powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting techniques. CrossFit athletes also use dumbbells, gymnastics rings, pull-up bars, kettle bells, and many bodyweight exercises. It is hard work.

I returned the next week and began two months of one on one training with three different CrossFit trainers. I sweated, I groaned, I cursed.  But I did it.  Everything was scaled down for this newbie.  Lifting weights was just the bar for me.   There are two.  One is15lbs and the other 45lbs.  I used the lighter bar to learn the correct movements. 

One day Justin told me I was going to do the Work Out of the Day (WOD) but I only had to do it THREE times.   I puffed my way through it and Justin called out, “I lied.  You have to do it FOUR times.” Akkkk.  I grunted some more.  He then said, “Lorra, I lied again.  You can do it FIVE times, just like everyone else.”  I finished and collapsed.  But I had completed the WOD.  Secretly I was proud of myself.

Two months after I started, I was put into a regular class.  I chose the time that worked best for me and was warned that this group was mostly 20-somethings.  I knew it would be OK.  I was not competing with someone thirty years younger than me. I am competing with myself.

When my old gym trainer would drop my reps it was effectively lessening the amount I did.  Here, there is no lessening.  From across the gym I hear “Don’t you drop that now!”  “Don’t you quit.” “FIGHT THROUGH.”

On a recent WOD run a fellow client ran with me on my last leg.  I mumbled to myself that at 200m I could turn and walk.  “Oh no, you will not slow down. If you do, then your body will expect it.”  She took my arm and we jogged back.   As I approached the gym, last as usual, stumbling up the driveway, everyone was there calling MY name.  I knew then I had TWO choices.  I could drop dead 20m out (probably from embarrassment) or I could finish.  

It isn’t easy.  My body aches and cries out after every workout.  But every day we warm up.  Every day we stretch.  Every day we try harder.  Every day *I* feel stronger.  This is not a quick fix.  It is a life change.  There are many things I still can not master.  I have a very long way to go.  Basically until the end of my life.

Sure, I have aching muscles.  I have blisters. But I also have …stamina.  After 3 months I already notice small subtle changes.  As part of the WOD we ran 800 metres, three times, and I did it.  Me, who couldn’t run half a block!  I swing kettle bells at 35lbs.  I do 100 sit ups. I no longer have to think about holding my stomach in.  It comes naturally. I see muscles in my arms that were not there before.  Then one morning I noticed…I lost five pounds! 

But I think the main reason I stay here is that no matter what your level of skill, no matter how strong or weak you are, someone is there to root for you.  Someone is in your face to push you through.  I have watched some very strong people push themselves further with the help of someone beside them. 

Every day that I do CrossFit is a learning experience.  And it is not just physical. It is mental training also.  I have my coaches at CrossFit Point Break to thank.  Justin, David, and Calli watch me and guide me as I become stronger.  I have my new friends to thank also.  Without their support I might have given up.

Have you ever driven past the Spring Post Office and wondered about that place down the road where the people are flipping huge truck tires?  Or hanging from the bars doing pull ups?  Or running down the road?  That’s us.  That’s the athletes at CrossFitPoint Break getting better. 

As my T shirt says:

IT NEVER GETS ANY EASIER. YOU JUST GET BETTER.

CrossFit Pointbreak Google it

I want to add today's WOD because I could never have done this 6 months ago.

    1600m rest 3 min   11:10min
    1200m rest 2 min    8:55min
    800m, rest 1 min     6:15min
    400 m.                     3:00min

     total time 35:35
 

I made it to ONE YEAR, lost several pounds, and was improving steadily. Then I was gone for eight months, living on the road for work.  Returning is very hard.  I was sick the first month after every WOD.  My head thought I could do it, but my body had forgotten all it had learned.  I think it was the intense summer heat at noon that added to my misery. Mad dogs, Englishmen, and CrossFitters?  

 I scaled down the WODs and started anew.   I still can’t do the cool down well.  Bending over just exacerbates my nausea.  I need to walk it off. My weights are much less than before, but I am gradually building up again.   Yesterday was 5K Monday.  Huh?

5 km = 3.10685 mi.  OR 3 mi. and 188.0 yd  I completed this in 38:51 minutes.   OK it felt like 2 days, 6 hours, 17 minutes.  LOL   But I did it.  

You’ll pass out before you die.  ;-)

Took me 2 years to do a single toes2bar.  I still can only do a few but... I can do it! :-)

Houston, we have a problem.

Houston, we have a problem.

This Christmas we had a guest from afar.  It was her first trip to the Mainland USA so we wanted to show her our city. Where to go, what to see in the great town and fourth largest U.S. city of Houston?

I suggested the ship Channel, but the tour was full all week long.   The cold and wet weather precluded the Bayou walk or Arboretum, where, even in winter, the Bog trail is fun. No one was really interested in the museums or theatre. My son suggested NASA.  Sure, the huge rockets, the interactive displays, the history. 

My, my, have things changed.   Last time we were there, we wandered around among the rockets that were interspersed on the grounds.  We toured the training facility pool and mission control center.  The day was intelligent and FUN.

Now, the entry fee is almost prohibitive for a family.  We bought online and SAVED $5.00 per person!  On entry to the building there is a bag search and metal detector.  Inside, there is…LEGO land?   No one over age 4 admitted? The exhibits seemed to be cheap amusement-park standards, kiddie playground equipment, or rides that cost extra (on top of the $6 parking). Where is the Space Station “room”?  Where is the History of Flight area? Where is ANYTHING that might make us wonder or think? 

Our last trip to NASA.

We decided to take the tram ride to see

A: Mission Control or

B: the training pool for weightlessness.  

Not both.  Either/or.  We chose Mission Control because the line was shorter.   Sign reads: FOR SECURITY ALL PASSENGERS MUST HAVE PHOTO TAKEN.   WTF?  As a group of four we were told to “stand there and look here”.  I looked THERE and stuck my hand up in the air.   Security my @$$.  Oh and if we just happen to want a souvenir photo of our disgruntled selves waiting in a claustrophobic line for 60 minutes?

THIRTY DOLLARS thank you!

On the monitor above us is Miss Texas form several years ago and the highlights (read ads for tourist traps) of the City of Webster.  Over, and over, and over.

After snaking a few more times and getting poked by oblivious cretins wearing full backpacks that hung over into MY line space and jostled ME, we approached another security check point.  Take EVERYTHING out of your pockets and put on the table.  Give a flunky a uniform and a bit of pseudo-authority and they become neo-Nazis, waving their batons around.   It’s a freaking tram ride, not a nuclear power plant! 

We are handed laminated, numbered cards.  We MUST hold these until we return to the tram after visiting Mission Control.  Huh??   I suppose it is a body count. Can’t have us sneaky visitors wandering off to do steal state secrets at Space Center Control! We are advised to note our row number and to return to this exact spot on the tram afterwards.  We file into the building like sheep and are told to turn off all cell phones before we walk up the three flights of stairs. What?  Is the phone signal going to bring down the space station?  Or do you just fear we will be texting our BF instead of listening to your spiel?  I fear the obese family ahead of my might not make it up the steps but they do. 

OK.  I am awed by Mission Control.  I’ve seen it before and it is rather small, but this is the place where the real activity is!  Nothing is happening in space today, so the room is relatively empty.  (HEY… what is that KID doing down in there?)  I bet when the shuttle is up this place is hopping! 

Back on the tram to the next stop and the Saturn V rocket. The 30-story tall rocket is now housed to protect it from the elements.  It is incredible to see the power stages and the tiny capsule for the crew.  One man seems to really know his stuff s we follow him around and listen to what he tells his family.  On the wall are all the missions.  All the astronauts are in their space suits except for Apollo 13.   Hmmm.  Did they wear business suits into space?  Now I know the story of the aborted lunar landing, but I still don’t understand why their photo is different. 

 

We caught the tram back to the main building and looked at the space suit display, pointing out to our guest how short these men were.

We did have a good day.  Our guest happily took many photos and we all had fun together.  But…   I left with a bad taste and the gnawing feeling that this national treasure really was a national embarrassment.