Sierra Snow !!

Time can cause one to fee like a sloth. At least I believe that. I've lived up here three and a half years, yet today is the first time I've been in real snow. Just in time to leave California for a less likely snow environs: Florida...

Yeah, Florida. There goes my hard-won status as a hill-climber in the cycling club. Just when I've acclimated to dry-heat and brown-tinted summers here, the ever-present panic of wildfire in summer and the bott-grabbing mud of winter slop in the pastures, we're moving.

But we'll look at it as an adventure. Gators, and maybe some surfing, since we'll be on the coast. And Amy's already calling me her fiancee. (She HAS to, to give me official status!)

So as a gesture to the California we'll be missing, I went with Ian's family to see snow and slide around in saucers and pelt snowballs at his innocent -- or not so innocent -- kids... and while I was up there. I wandered off to snap some pictures, though all I brought was my cell phone.

The Sierras are so beautiful!

Time Warp in Minneapolis !!

Lana and I shivered through a cold pre-Christmas in Chattanooga, some record-breaking chills including the evening I arrived and drove through a spontaneous ice storm. Ice coated the entire car, including the windshield wipers, which sounded like "swish-thud!, swish-thud!"

That night, after a long transit across country for me and some exhausting anticipation on Lana's part, we were deep in slumber and woken suddenly at 3 am by: A FIRE ALARM! We had to evacuate the hotel in the bitter cold. Luickily, Lana had new warm pjs!

We took it slow, and even walked the next day instead of drove to our usual muffin spot, where we invented several card games... a good start to the day!

I had shiped ahead of time a number of presents, so Lana was able to pick a few each morning, and even a few at night, making the most of a Christmas tradition away from home. In the evenings we had popcorn and watched movies like "School of Rock," and "Huckleberry Finn."

When I left we both cried a little, but we remember an excellent visit. I told her Amy and I are moving to Florida, so I'l be able to see her more often, (becauseI can drive.) She smiled and said that sounded really good to her!

So the long trip back to California began by driving to Nashville airport (2.5 hours), where the outbound plane was delayed 1.5 hours. So I got a beer. When we landed in Minneapolis, it was a whiteout, and incoming planes were delayed in holding patterns. A 9:40 departure time drifted to 10:10, then 10:30. then 10:55, then 11:30. When the pilots finally landed, we cheered, but quieted when we learned the stewerdesses had been diverted to Omaha, due to weather. Departure moved to 12:25. Finally some tired-looking stewardesses were lured to do double-duty and walked by our area to cheers, though they didn't smile.

I took some snapshots of the heavy snowfall as they got the plane ready. At about 12:45 we boarded, then sat still in a weird car-wash of de-icing fluids. I've never witnessed that before. This took almost 45 minutes. Meanwhile, the winds were blowing and the snow continued to fall at an increasing rate. I thought i saw ice re-form on thewings. But we launched, successfully, right into the snow soup, and I thought I felt the plane struggle, but kept my thoughts positive.

We vertically cleared the snowstorm, and flew into the jetstream, landing in Sacramento at about 250 am, a plane of survivors with universally dry, red-rimmed eyes, with no coffee in sight...

Trucksicle !

You'll never believe this is the warm sunny South!

With this "trucksicle" in the background, it certainly is hard to believe...

Not exactly the warm welcome I expected, says Brian;

Lana says it is unusual, too. And her zipper was stuck open!

At least we had a warm hotel to go to...

it must be warm if there's a fire,

which, apparently there was at 2:30 in the AM because

a whoopin' and a screetchin' came upon us,

and while Lana was sure it was just a dream, or Brian's alarm clock too early,

it was an emergency.

So out in the street we were, in pajamas, on ice,

some people were even barefoot. Luckily, Lana stayed warm in new owl pajamas.

The firemen had cool knee patches, but not as nice as Lana's pajamas.

So we made up for the night alarm by sleeping til 10:30 this morning!

BBBRRRRR!

This morning I crossed the threshhold into insanity. In case, there was any lingering doubt, this morning erased that. I got up at 6:30 to ride with the Sierra Foothills club. We met above snow level and rode beginning -- and ending -- in 34 degrees. Because the storm ended24 hours ago, we avoided Colfax. Icy roads and all.

But it was cold enough this morning, I foolishly showed up with half-finger gloves, but luckily Larry lent me full finger gloves. My old frostbite reanimated in fingers and toes, as expected. But I didn't realize that my cheeks felt like they would just peel off. Beginning our ride with a downhill at a safe 25-30 miles an hour, the wind chill broughgt the temps down close to zero. And in the shade.

With each turn, though, the environs revealed more sunshine, crisp clean air and sedate farmsteads. These, scattered along the hillsides, is what the Foothillsare all about. What a glorous way to begin the day, even if it involved a little pain!

The ride wasn't terribly long, but we climbed, descended, spun, cornered and did all the fun stuff one can look forward to on a bikeride. Thanks, SFCYCLISTS !

Yo-Sem-It-E

We did it! Took the time, made the big drive. And had loads of fun! We found a great little B and B near Mariposa, drove each morning along the torrent that is the Merced River, and entered the tourist-filled park. Besides the people, the park was, uh, respendent. (I'll look at that spelling later...)

And Lana proved herself a formidable photographer!

The valley floor was lush, and the greens were very saturated. The sky was crystal blue. Like a picture book. We even saw some nice deer, although too close to the road for comfort.

On our one full day we hiked to not one, but TWO waterfalls. And they were gushing, not just flowing. Lana slept well -- ah, "rested her eyes" -- in the car on the way back to Mariposa!

After puff-pancake breakfast and fruit platters the next morning, we went back into the park. One last look around and dipping our feet in the river.... and WHOOSH! Lana slipped and fell in the icy water and let out a scream that rebounded off the trees in the pine forest around us. We hustled her to the car and held up a towel as a changing room. We soon had a story we could laugh about.

INTERMISSION....

Just returned from Yosemite, where the water was still running strong. Very nice, except for all the people and litterbugs and animal feeders.

That adventure follows very soon, but in the meantime, here are some swimming pics since the summer havs been relieved with water-playing-around-time.

Summer Goes On....

The goats moan and complain, the cats prance and wail, the horses voice their annoyance with the heat... and the sleeping ends at 5:30 am. We're in the middle of a long string of summer mornings. Everyone is up, except Lana! She gets to rest up (not as though she needs a beauty sleep) until nine, ten, even eleven in the morning. Just in time for my lunch!

She's a demon with a camera, a card shark, a swimclass graduate, and a crack-up with her sense of humor. She memorizes movies, books, and, to my dismay, some of my weakest bedtime stories. Fortunately she also can recite some of my good ones!

The game of the week last week was "Pirates" and, AARUGGHH matey, she's mighty good at that game.

more soon....