California Here We Come - Part 2

The Trip


On Monday, February 18, 2008, we finished packing the now very expensive, used van and headed south again. After two weeks at home taking care of long accumulated mail (mostly junk), a snow-covered roof and general house duties; we were ready to once again, leave the last vestiges of winter in Utah behind.

We drove south on I-15, passing familiar landscape and stopped several hundred miles later at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas. Fortunately, the trip was uneventful and yes, the van appeared to be in excellent running condition, at least so far. We drove into the city and stopped at the Orleans Hotel to purchase tickets for the upcoming Neil Sedaka concert, which we will attend on the return trip. We were determined not to eat our first dinner meal at a buffet and so we ate at the Main Street Station buffet! We made a quick trip through the restaurant just to check out the offerings and it looked so inviting that we just had to sit down. We rationalized that since we were already there, we just as well have dinner. Of course, we over ate and knew we would going in, but the food was both varied and excellent. We'll make up for the lapse in good judgement tomorrow.

We enjoyed a good night's sleep at the Nellis Inn and arose early in the morning for breakfast at the Blueberry Hill Cafe - excellent breakfast! Shirley is still suffering from the lingering effects of the flu so we kicked back and went to a movie in the afternoon. I don't care what the critics say, I thought The Bucket List was one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. Nicholson and Freeman were just outstanding, how could these two talents be anything but outstanding. I don't care if Nicholson is paid ten million for any film he does, he's one of the few worth the dough.

Dinner this evening was at Binion's Horseshoe Casino. Binion was a real live outlaw and at one time was the Dallas mob boss and is reputed to have murdered more than one adversary. Benny served several years during the mid ninteen-fifties in Leavenworth for tax evasion. Benny was a Las Vegas icon always serving his customers with his own brand of philosophy: Good food, good whiskey, good gamble. His friend and poker great "Amarillo Slim" Preston suggested as an epitaph, "He was either the gentlest bad guy or the baddest good guy you'd ever seen." I recall seeing Benny Binion years ago sitting at a table with Merle Haggard. Benny was a well-known and often seen fixture in his casino on Glitter Gulch.


California..again

Back to the Inn to get prepared for our travels to California. I've always thought the drive from Las Vegas to Los Angeles was a real drag. The four hours it takes to drive the 270 miles feels like an all day affair. Maybe it's because of the mundane desert scenery that encompasses the first two or three hours and then again it might be the incessant traffic that is so familiar to California drivers. In any event, it's a long day. We arrived at Fort MacArthur around four o'clock in the afternoon and checked into our room. We were looking forward to an early evening and a good night's sleep.

It's Thursday and we're up very early this morning for the drive to Paramount Studios to see the live taping of the Dr. Phil television show. It was the only available taping and I thought what the hell, it's free! The traffic wasn't as bad as I had anticipated and of course, we were able to drive in the diamond (car pool) lane and that really expedited our trip. We arrived as requested before nine a.m. and proceeded to park at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, apparently the Dr Phil show has an agreement to use their facility for $10 bucks a car. Frankly, I'm no Dr. Phil fan and standing in line for three hours to sit in the audience and watch Dr. Phil discuss the relative merits of spanking children, was not my idea of a good time. In one brief insightful moment into Dr. Phil's temperament we overheard a member of his staff talking on a cell phone behind the stage during his interview with these "child-beaters"and I thought he was going to come right out of his chair. His response to this breach was, "Bones? Bones (one of his many minions, I assume) are you there? Someone is talking and I want it stopped NOW!" I'm sure this fool met with an even stronger litany of Dr. Phil's ire after the show. Anyway, I was glad when the show ended. What's really outrageous is that this guy is paid over $40 million a year for his "professional" opinion. Somethings just aren't fair.

The next day we decided to head to Warner Brothers Studio to check out the tour. I had read that this studio tour was a "real" tour and not contrived or nearly as popular as Universal Studios. One thing is certain, it was lot less expensive than the Universal tour. Our guide, Emily, was extremely knowledgeable and the two and a half hour tour was great fun and gave us some real insight into the operations and the history of movie-making in Hollywood. One of the highlights of the tour was walking onto the set of "Friends" (see above) and visualizing Rachel, Monica, Joey, Phoebe, Chandler and Ross spouting about how you really can never have enough friends.

Emily told us that since the writer's strike had ended they were back to filming and that the following evening they would be taping Two and a Half Men and we should try to get tickets. Fat chance I thought, but what the hell, might just as well call the number she gave me and see what happens. Of course, the phone number resulted in a recording asking for my name and phone number. I did as instructed without the least bit of confidence that I would receive a response.

Lo and behold, the following morning "Steve" called me on my cell phone and told me that though the show was technically sold out, he would put our names on the list and if we arrived early that afternoon, there was a good chance we would be admitted. After driving around the area and once again having lunch at Jerry's Deli in Westwood, we headed to Warner Brothers. We arrived about four-thirty in the afternoon for the seven o'clock taping.

After an hour of waiting outside the gates, a studio representative herded us through the various sound stages until we reached our destination. After everyone was seated, the warm-up guy appeared. Mark Sweet is a professional hypnotist who I suspect makes a fairly decent living as a warm-up act for several series including: Everybody Loves Raymond, Reba, Yes, Dear and of course, Two and a Half Men. I'm not sure I really understand the need to be coaxed, cajoled and bullied into laughing at the right moments throughout the taping, but if that's what it takes, so be it.

Mark was extremely animated throughout the taping and kept the audience aware of the need to react to every scene even after two or three takes of the same comic routine. Charlie Sheen and his sidekick, Jon Cryer would flub their lines frequently and numerous retakes were required and after hearing the same lines three times, it does become a little difficult to conjure up an really authentic guffaw. Mark actually became more obnoxious as the evening progressed with his constant harangues and insistence that members of the audience come forward and engage in ridiculous behavior in front of the other invited guests. Personally, I didn't get a big bang out of exhibitionist people imitating animal sounds or bearing their fat bellies. I know all of this activity was meant to fill up the dead space between takes and set arrangements, but I was too interested in what was taking place on stage with the hundreds of staffers moving around the set.

There were producers and directors, assistant directors, assistants to the assistant directors, make-up people, set designers, camera operators, costume people and a variety of grunt workers. Mark told us that it required over 250 people to pull off the show and I would guess that they all take home nice paychecks, especially the "stars". As a matter of fact, Charlie Sheen is the highest paid actor in a sitcom on television with a reported salary of $500K per episode. In other words, one of Hollywood's notorious bad boys made a cool half a million during the time I was sitting in the studio audience listening to half-baked jokes from the warm-up guy! Hey, life ain't fair.

Well, we had our fling with Hollywood and it was time to prepare for our next adventure on the Carnival Spirit to the Mexican Riviera. We drove from L.A. to San Diego the next day where we would board our ship. While in San Diego we again stayed at the Navy Lodge and ventured out to see more sights. The weather was warm and sunny so we decided to take the harbor cruise. This is really a fun and inexpensive way to see both the south and north arms of the harbor. The guide points out all of the interesting landmarks along the coast and on Coronado Island, Harbor Island and Shelter Island. It was a great way to spend the afternoon.

The Cruise

The following day I picked up our cruising partners, Doug and Bonnie Wright at the airport and headed back to the Navy Lodge where Shirley was busy with her last minute packing. We drove to the pier and left the ladies at the dock as Doug and I returned to the Naval Station to park my car during our absence. After we returned to the pier, we began the checking-in process. We boarded the Carnival Spirit and went to our assigned cabin, number 5157, on the Upper deck. We had reserved a balcony with an obstructed view which meant that when we stepped out on our balcony we had a view of the life boats, but if we stretched we could still see the ocean. After settling in we met our friends in the LaPlaya Grill for the first of many buffet lunches.

On this cruise to the Mexican Riviera the ports-of-call were Acapulco, Zihuatanejo and Manzanillo. After two days at sea we sailed into the port of Acapulco and decided to spend our time visiting the ancient petroglyphs of Palma Sola. Palma Sola is a recently discovered archaeological site about a thousand feet above sea level in El Valadero National Park, overlooking the beautiful Acapulco Bay. After a thirty minute ride we arrived at the site and began our trek up the mountain. The path is lined with large stone steps and every hundred yards or so are 2,500 year old petroglyphs. There are dozens of designs ranging from anthromorphological to zoomorphological images created by the first settlers in the area, the Yopes. Very little is known about this civilization though it is believed they developed this site in the period from 600 BC to 200 AD. It was an interesting and energizing day after two days of deck dwelling on the ship.

The next port-of-call was Zihuatanejo, the name Zihuatanejo in the native language means "place of women" because it was a matriarchal society. In pre-Columbian times, a Tarascan leader with a title of Caltzontzin (that means: He who governs countless houses) frequented the area from the modern day Lake Pátzcuaro region. Legend has it that he constructed the rock barrier on Playa Las Gatas (named for the harmless whiskered sharks that used to be found there) to provide a sheltered swimming area and harbor for the women and children, though the town's official historian says this is a myth. Nevertheless, that barrier, whether man-made or natural, continues to protect the beach to this day.

Zihuatanejo and the neighboring town of Ixtapa are primarily tourist destinations today. Ixtapa was built by the Mexican government in the late sixties to serve as a resort for tourists. Ixtapa is a world class resort with two champion golf courses and half a dozen world class International resort franchise hotels (from Club Med to Radisson) and half a dozen more renowned Mexican national brand hotels (Presidente Intercontinental, Las Brisas). Ixtapa is also home to Marina Ixtapa, a first-class marina with more than 600 slips for boats.

I prefer the laid back style of Zihuatenejo and fortunately that's where the ship docked. We left the ship and boarded the tender to take us to the pier while the Carnival anchored off shore (see inset). As we strolled along the beach I recalled our first visit to this sleepy fishing village. It was a trip we took with our son Jason and one of his buddies almost twenty years ago. We spent the first few days in Acapulco and then drove the approximate 130 miles northwest to Zihuatenejo. We found the Sotavento Hotel as we were driving through the area and decided that with its absolutely glorious view of the bay and the very reasonable price - $30.00; it was perfect.

We decided to once again visit the hotel and after a charming walk of about a mile through town we came upon the Sotavento. It was still unchanged after all these years, but the surrounding properties were now sleek, modern and very pricey. It was still a diamond in the rough destined to fall by the wayside in the near future to make way for another newer and more lavish property. I was very curious to see what, if anything, had changed at the hotel and of course the first change was the price. Our thirty dollar room was now $145.00. We wound our way down the myriad of stairs leading to the beach and found "our" room and the maid was kind enough to let us walk through and rekindle a vision of the room those many years ago. The room was exactly as we had left it and the hammock hanging from the porch may well have been the same one. In any event, it was a fun revisit of a moment in time.

Our final port-of-call was Manzanillo, the largest port in Western Mexico and about 165 miles south of Puerto Vallarta. Manzanillo is not a heavily called on port by cruise lines yet and so it is somewhat less spoiled by tourism. Our plan for the day was to visit the pyramids at La Campana on the outskirts of the state capital of Colima. After leaving the ship we hired a taxi to drive us the two hours from the port to Colima. Our driver, Francisco, was only slightly more fluent in English than I was in Spanish, but between the two of us and a lot of finger pointing, we managed to arrive safely. The drive through the countryside was very interesting and included plantations of coffee, bananas, avocado, limes, tomatoes and tropical varieties of fruit such as mango, mamey, tamarind and coconut. The state of Colima appears to be prospering and the people are friendly and hard-working.

La Campana has the only "Tumba de Tiro" which literally means tomb shooting, open to the public in Colima, that's why this site is better than the others. The graves are dug in rectangular or circular shape anywhere from six to thirteen feet deep. Inside the grave at La Campana you can see handmade figures (like the little dogs), pottery made from mud and obsidian and skeletal remains. The pyramids at La Campana are not as tall as you might see at other excavations throughout Mexico, for example the great pyramids at Chichen Itza, but they are very interesting. There are fifteen squares surrounded by big constructions and pyramids. The site is very impressive and even more so when one realizes that the current excavation represents perhaps as little as one percent of the total original community.

As we departed La Campana we were awestruck by two massive volcanos in the distance rising from the earth. These volcanoes: Volcán de Colima (or Volcán de Fuego) is 12,992 feet high, not quite as high as its sister volcano, the Nevado de Colima, only five miles further north, which, at 14,206 feet above sea level, is Mexico's sixth highest peak. In the past 400 years, the Volcán de Fuego has been the most active volcano in Mexico, and indeed one of the most active in the world, having erupted at least 30 times since 1576. It is considered to be one of the country's most dangerous volcanoes. Numerous villages in its shadow keep a wary eye on its level of activity. Emergency evacuations have become a regular event since its latest burst of activity began in 1961.

On our return we visited the capital, Colima, and stopped briefly to walk through the main square and visit the numerous gardens throughout the square. After our brief visit to Colima we drove another six miles to the town of Comalá, named after the Mexican cooking utensil on which most of the corn-based botanas are prepared, the comal. The sopitos, small tortillas covered with tender, tasty shredded meat, were delicious and numerous varieties kept coming our way. The ceviche, marinated fish, on a corn tortilla, was excellent and no doubt originated in Manzanillo, the port is known as the swordfish and sailfish capital.

We arrived back at the ship with time to spare and went back to our cabin to freshen up and head to dinner. The dinner menu on the Carnival was generally pretty decent and offered a variety of selections. The only problem with food on the ship was a tendency to over eat, but then, that's part of the culture of cruising.

We now had two days at sea before returning to San Diego and we were all looking forward to a little "down" time. The days at sea are usually spent at a leisurely pace and aside from catching up on some long delayed reading, we wiled away the hours playing cards and of course, eating. The seas were moderately calm and I experienced only a mild case of mal de mer and we enjoyed the frequent visits from a family of dolphins and numerous sea turtles.

The Return Home

The ship docked in San Diego early in the morning on Wednesday the fifth of March and we grabbed our luggage at dock side and went back to the Navy Base to retrieve our car. We were on the road by nine in the morning headed back to Las Vegas. Again we would spend the next two nights at Nellis Air force Base with the highlight being the Sedaka concert at the Orleans on Thursday evening. The attendees at the concert was as expected, mostly senior citizens or soon-to-be seniors, who lived with the music of the fifties, sixties and into the seventies. Everyone in the audience knew Neil's repertoire and you could see heads bobbing, feet tapping and lips syncing the words to everyone of those classics that meant so much to that generation. Sedaka's last "great" tune was "Laughter in the Rain" in 1974 written by Neil and Philip Cody, a great songwriter who has collaborated with Neil on many of his best including: Solitaire and Bad Blood.

Unfortunately, the evening ended on a sour note. When we returned to our van in the parking lot of the hotel, I was immediately confronted with the reality of rampant crime in Las Vegas. The driver's side window had been broken and the thieves had grabbed my GPS. If they had asked, I probably would have given it to them rather than deal with the replacement of the window. But, hey, this is Las Vegas, a desperate city filled with desperate people.

The weather was warm and so I decided to leave the broken window as it was until we arrived in Cedar City. So we hit the road with a fully air conditioned vehicle and drove to Cedar City with the deafening sound of the wind racing through our ears. We stopped briefly at a friend's house in Cedar and he helped me put a temporary fix on the window using plastic and tape. Fully encased, we jumped back on I-15 and headed north to Salt Lake City. We arrived home late in the afternoon and were relieved to see everything as it was when we left. Thomas, our current familial boarder, had ensured, with the exception of his total disaster of a bedroom, that everything else was in proper order.

The second trip to California and Mexico was equally as pleasant as the first and we enjoyed every moment - well, maybe not every moment, there was the window and nasty Dr. Phil. However, leaving the cold and snow behind in Utah is always pleasant no matter what else happens. But, as they say, it is always nice to be back home. Adios!

Goodbye Winter, Hello Sunshine

California here we come....

Snow was coming. December had brought the white stuff to us already and the forecast was for more of the same. Snow doesn't fall when it's warm, so it was clear that along with the snow the temperatures were going to drop. It was time to leave. Leaving home and going south is easy for the unemployed and so that was the plan. We packed up the car and headed south on I-15. The roads were clear and good weather followed us to Las Vegas, our first stop.

We checked in at the Nellis Air Force Base Inn and quickly unpacked, after all, this was Las Vegas, not a minute to waste. Heading toward the gate we passed by the Thunderbird hangar and drove to Las Vegas Boulevard. I hadn't realized that two days after the riotous New Year's celebration, there would still be throngs of people lining the street extending their celebratory mood. The "strip" was packed with people hoping to catch the Pirates dueling at the Treasure Island Hotel or waiting for the dancing water fountains of the Bellagio. Of course, every fifty feet there is a hawker pushing a flyer announcing "escorts available".

We pressed our way past the unending crowds and made our way into Caesar's to check out the buffet ( the beginning of many buffets). It was clear, as we were winding our way through the cavernous casino, that bad economic times had not affected Las Vegas, the blackjack tables were all requiring a minimum bet of $25 and there wasn't a seat available! After zigging and zagging past the hordes of salivating gamblers, we came upon an inevitable queue waiting to taste the delectable items set forth by the imaginative chefs. The young bubble gum chewing cashier informed me that the wait for the buffet would be about an hour, unless, of course, I was a platinum guest aka heavy roller. Since our hunger wouldn't allow for such a delay, nor did I really see myself standing in line in a smoke-filled casino waiting patiently to satisfy my hunger pangs, we decided to move on. All of this by the way for the "gone are the bargain priced days in Las Vegas" of thirty dollars.

After leaving the ubiquitous "strip" we drove west on Tropicana and arrived at the Orleans Hotel. From a prior visit, I remembered an intimate dining experience at a little Italian restaurant in the hotel and thought this would be a good choice. We parked some distance from the hotel, standard procedure in Vegas, and walked to the hotel through the parking garage, down the endless hallways and finally arrived at heart of the hotel - the casino. A search for the restaurant ended with the ever-present security guard telling us it had closed some months previous, however, he suggested we try their great buffet. As a last resort, we jumped in a rather short line and within minutes we were in the buffet. The food was plentiful, if not overwhelming, and for the most part it was tasty. The best part of the experience was the price: $15 each!

After a good night's sleep we again prepared for our next stop, San Diego. Amazingly, the traffic was light until we reached the outskirts of Riverside. We arrived at the Navy Lodge about three o'clock in the afternoon. I was excited at the prospect of having dinner that evening with my old friends from Thomson and Harcourt who were attending their meeting at the Marriott. After we unpacked and I freshened up, I bid farewell to Shirley (she was equally pleased to have a little time to herself) and drove to the Gaslamp District for dinner at Salvadore's Italian restaurant on Front Street. I waited outside until the group had assembled in a private room and then I entered with unanimous surprise from all in attendance, especially, David Hall, for whom this evening was to honor upon his pending retirement. It was wonderful to see old friends that I had worked with in some cases for thirty years. These guys are truly publishing professionals and people of superior wit and intelligence, they are the singular reason I miss being a part of that once wonderful business.

The following evening I would be dining with the "Manly-Men", a group of mostly younger hotshots from my Thomson years that came together a few years back as an "elite" males-only club with the premise of doing or saying everything and anything that wasn't deemed politically correct in this day and age. The basic idea was to meet for dinner one evening during the sales meeting away from the main group at an upscale (expensive) steakhouse and demonstrate complete hedonistic behavior. In order to remain in good standing one has to abide by certain rules of protocol. For example, it would be frowned upon if you ate anything at the dinner that wasn't genuine prime beef, no frou frou food for these guys, or if you found fault with Whitney's wine selection. Of course, everyone was expected to join in the conversation with sundry stories of humor and disgust (mostly disgust). In my case, they always wanted to know about the effects of using viagra, which I thought was a bit presumptious, but to humor this motley group, I spun some very wild tales about all-night lovemaking and the benefits to be derived by regular usage. Of course, they were enthralled and excited about the prospects of a lifetime of unyielding sex. If they only knew! It was as usual a disgusting and fun-filled evening. I was especially pleased because as an alumnus, I was exempt from sharing in the extremely ostentatious bill!

Rain continued throughout the next day, but we were determined not to let it deter us from investigating the beautiful city of San Diego (see inset), and since Shirley had recovered from an unexpected bout with a twenty-four hour bug, we decided to visit the San Diego Art Museum at Balboa Park. We casually strolled through the galleries learning about the works of the American landscape painter, Asher Durand and Everett Gee Jackson, the San Diego Modernist. Balboa Park is an absolute must see in San Diego, it is truly a treasure. After strolling the grounds and trying to stay warm, we drove to Mission Valley and had lunch at the Corner Bakery. After a great bowl of homemade chowder we spent the rest of the afternoon watching Will Smith's I am Legend. It was an enjoyable and relaxing day despite the unpleasant weather.

The next morning before driving to Los Angeles, we decided to stop at Fort Rosecrans Military Cemetery, my father's burial place, and to stop briefly at North Island, the Navy's main port, to see the recently returned U.S.S. Reagan. When we returned to our parked car, we quickly discovered that we were in trouble. The car turned over, but once in gear, it would not move in either reverse or drive. The check engine light was burning brightly on the dash and it was apparent that the car would have to be towed to a garage. I had hopes that the problem would be minor, but of couse, the diagnosis showed, according to the expert mechanic, that a new transmission was in order. The charge for repairs would be $4,000.00! What could we do? I reluctantly pulled out my Visa card and said, "go ahead and fix it".

We left the car at the garage and rented a car from Alamo and resumed our planned travels. Time to head north to Los Angeles and our next venue, Fort MacArthur in San Pedro, the Los Angeles Air Force Base's visitor's lodging. I'll bet most of you didn't realize there was an air base in Los Angeles, but yes, America's defense is alive and well in L.A. It's home to the air force's premier space and missile center, a really important mission. If you're interested, you can visit their website at http://www.losangeles.af.mil/. Ah hell, you're really not interested, so let's get on with the story.

We had dinner that night in San Pedro at J. Trani's on ninth street - we weren't really impressed, a bit pricey and ordinary. We were mostly looking forward to returning to our rather nice accomodations at the fort and getting a good night's sleep prior to our drive north to see my eighty-seven year old aunt in Port Hueneme.

We enjoyed the drive as we passed the beautiful Pacific Ocean and were looking forward to seeing Lucy, but also to visit the Ventura County Museum and see the George Stuart collection of historical figures. The collection currently exhibiting at the museum is the Tsarist years and beyond. Stuart's minatures are so realistic and exacting that one can almost see their eyes blink. Stuart was scheduled to be at the museum for a monologue on Ivan the Terrible through Peter I, so we decided to attend. Stuart is both entertaining and an extremely knowledgeable historian. His insight into the private lives of the tsars was interesting and educational. He is of course, erudite and pompous at the same time, but what the hell at least he knows his stuff. We may try to attend another session on our next journey.

We dined at the Whale's Tail in Oxnard that evening with Aunt Lucy and had a very enjoyable meal. The clam chowder was excellent and the view of the harbor from our table was grand. Best of all, the weather was pleasant. We spent the rest of the evening talking "family" with Lucy and marveling at her youthfulness and vigor. She is the last remaining member of her generation and I know she misses her sisters terribly.

Early the next morning we set our sights on traveling to Santa Barbara,about forty miles north on U.S. 101, to meet good friends, Russ and Naomi Boersma. We had decided to join them for a day at San Simeon, the fabled castle of publishing magnate, William Randolph Hearst. The castle and grounds are very extensive and there is actually five different tours. We took the two hour "experience" tour which provided a nice overview of the entire estate . It was a great adventure and we really enjoyed seeing the conspictuous consumption that so marked the life of one of America's giants. We stopped for dinner at the famous Andersen's Pea Soup Restaurant in Buellton, a real treat especially with all of the memorabilia covering the walls. Oh and the food was very good. We bid farewell to our friends, the best that you could find, and headed back to Port Hueneme.

Early in the morning we joined Lucy for breakfast and then continued on our journey. Today we would visit Hollywood and join Scott Michaels, tour guide extraordinaire, on his Dearly Departed tour. Scott is a veritable fountain of Hollywood trivia and his tour covered lots of interesting and yes, macabre, sites. The famous Chateau Marmont where John Belushi died; the home of the Black Dahlia before she was brutally slain; the Labianca home of Charlie Manson and Helter Skelter fame; and the Menendez home in Beverly Hills (how could two boys raised in such rare luxury commit such a horrendous murder?). As we passed through Beverly Hills Scott pointed out numerous current and past celebrities residences. It's hard to imagine living with such wealth, but I'd sure like to try, how about you? It was a fun afternoon and well worth the thirty bucks. If you're interested you can check out Scott's website at http://www.dearlydepartedtours.com/DDT/index.htmlDDT/index.htmldearlydepartedtours.com/DDT/index.html.
We ate dinner that night at Jerry's Deli on Weyburn Avenue in Westwood. Wow! This place is one of my favorites, the menu is like twenty pages long and if you can't find your favorites, you ain't hungry. We did have some difficulty finding a parking place on this busy night of UCLA basketball and the wait in Jerry's was thirty minutes, but it was well worth the wait.

Today is Friday, the eleventh, and we needed to return to San Diego to retrieve my now very expensive used van. We picked up the van with assurances that all was well and we were good to go for the remainder of our long journey. We drove the hundred and twenty miles on I-5 back to Los Angeles and met my nephew and niece, Ben and Heather Forest for dinner at the Olive Garden, Heather's choice, not mine. Ben is a major in the air force stationed at Los Angeles Air Force Base. He has sort of told me what his job is, but damned if I can really understand what it is he really does. I guess he's a rocket scientist or something just as inexplicable, anyway, I do know he's very smart. He's headed to Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama - they're excited to have the opportunity to actually own a home instead of rent. He'll be assigned to the Air War College as an instructor - I told you he was smart.

I know this seems strange, but I like cemeteries. Did you know there are actually hundreds of groups that have a peculiar interest in cemeteries and in death in general? They are known loosely as taphophiliacs. If you really want to know, it comes from the Greek words taphos, meaning "tomb" or "sepulcher" and philia, meaning "attraction or affinity to something, in particular the love or obsession with something". So naturally since we were in the heart of the celebrity world, we took a trip to Hollywood Forever Cemetery on Santa Monica Boulevard. This fabled last resting place holds the remains of dozens of famous and infamous luminaries. Here is a photo of Shirley standing in front crypt of Rudolph Valentino in the Hollywood Cathedral Mausoleum. Valentino was the most worshipped celebrity in the country in the 1920's and tens of thousands of mostly women passed by his coffin when he died suddenly at thirty-one. The famed "woman in black" brought flowers to his modest crypt until she died. Others who are interred in this cemetery include: Tyrone Power; Douglas Fairbanks; Peter Lorre; Jayne Mansfield; Nelson Eddy and Cecil B. DeMille. There's even a notorious gangster here: Bugsy Siegel. Siegel once owned the Flamingo Hotel in Vegas and they even have a plaque at the hotel honoring him. He was shot while sitting in his lover's beverly hills home (also on Scott's tour) by a sniper with a high-powered rifle. His murder at age forty-one is still unsolved. Next to Pierce Brothers Westwood Cemetery, where Marilyn, Dean, Natalie and hundreds of others are buried, Hollywood Forever is one of the most interesting cemeteries to visit, that is, if you're into visiting cemeteries.

We ate lunch at Bubba Gump's in Santa Monica, a regular tourist stop at the pier, but the fish 'n chips weren't all that bad. Tomorrow is sailing day so tonight is laundry night. We wanted to insure that all our clothes were clean and ready for our seven night trip aboard the Carnival Pride.

The Cruise

We arrived at the Long Beach pier around noon and noticed that hundreds of our fellow passengers were already waiting in lines to check-in. The hour long wait was actually tolerable because everyone was in a festive mood, even me. I struck up a conversation with a newlywed couple in front of us and oddly enough, we saw them virtually everyday during the cruise. After we filled out the appropriate forms, we headed directly to our stateroom. We were excited to see our room since this was the first time we had ever reserved a balcony. In retrospect, we should have reserved an inside cabin as usual, since the balcony has spoiled us for future cruising. Cabin 8139 is on the panorama deck, one floor down from the buffet, so climbing stairs will not help mitigate the overindulgence we will undoubtedly engage in. We met our dining companions promptly at six o'clock that evening. I'm always leery of who I will be forced to sit with during seven dinner evenings and I always vow that if they are a problem, we will move to a different table. However, Glenn, Gloria, Dave and Marcia turned out to be outstanding company and we enjoyed them immensely. Glenn is a small town doctor from Spring Grove, Minnesota and Gloria is an English-Spanish translator. Dave and Marcia are Californians living in the San Fernando Valley.

Our first day at sea was mostly dedicated to orientation and eating and eating and eating. In all fairness, I did discover the fitness center and did my obligatory thirty minutes a day on the treadmill. I probably should have considered an solid hour since I brought back five more pounds than I left with.

The second day was also at sea and we wandered around the ship investigating the various activities. The sea days allow you to also observe the diversity of your fellow passengers and it's instantly noticeable that for many of these folks, cruising is a way of life. The more recent cruisers tend to be less appreciative of personal space and are not as likely to give-way in the buffet line. Also, many veteran cruisers tend to be old, I don't mean old like me, I mean like, super old. The walkers, canes and wheelchairs can present real obstacles as you make your way around the dining areas. I guess you've got to give credit to these stalwart travelers, but if only they would get hell out of my way (I'm kidding, really). Another group aboard the cruise ship are those folks like this guy in the picture who really enjoy dining. I don't mean enjoying a nice meal, I mean really love eating and eating and eating. I wonder if you can tell the number of cruises some of the folks have been on by the size of their waistlines? Oh well, I guess there's no such think as a diet cruise line.

Well, we finally arrived in Puerto Vallarta. We strolled along the beach and watched the sand artists build the most intricate and life-like sand sculptures I've ever seen. There are many ways that the local population attempts to eke out a living by entertaining the tourist trade and this has to be one of the most creative. You might be interested in a little history of how this once sleepy village was transformed into an international playground. Hollywood first discovered and put Puerto Vallarta on center stage in 1963. When John Huston began filming “Night of the Iguana” at Mismaloya, a nearby fishing village, its stars Deborah Kerr, Ava Gardner and Richard Burton attracted tremendous media attention. Coverage increased as Elizabeth Taylor joined Richard to fend off those attractive co-stars as well as to manage Burton’s alcohol problems. There was so much to report! For Richard, Liz purchased a hillside love nest, Casa Kimberly! Richard gave Liz the $350,000 Krupp Diamond Ring! Both married, the lovers created an international scandal. Burton, a Catholic, was threatened with excommunication. Taylor’s U.S. citizenship was jeopardized. Reporters swarmed over their x-rated romance! Suddenly, Puerto Vallarta was a famous destination. By the way, there is a monument to just about everybody in Puerto Vallarta even to the cab drivers.

We grabbed a tour in town and hopped aboard the bus that took us to a tequila factory where we tasted the wares that didn't taste anything like the tequila I had drank in the past. The almond-vanilla flavored tequila was the overwhelming favorite with Shirley, so we bought a bottle. After the factory visit, we rode to Mismaloya and had lunch at the site of the filming of the Predator starring Arnold. The restaurant was overpriced, but the food was acceptable. We had to remember that these tours always stop at predetermined places to shop and eat, there is money to be made. However, no ones forces you to spend once you arrive, right?

The next morning we arrived at Mazatlan. Mazatlan is a typical Mexican coastal village with five star hotels within blocks of extreme poverty and the ever present gilded cathedral. We grabbed a cabbie and he agreed to show us the sites for a modest fee and off we went. Ramon did not speak very English very well, but between his broken English and my stilted Spanish, we survived the tour. We saw the cliff divers as they catapulted from the rocky cliffs into the waters of the Olas Altas (high waters). They have to exercise great care and precise timing since the water is only six feet deep at times. They also have to time their dives to coincide with the arrival of the city tour buses. Tourist will only donate if they see a dive. Mazatlan was not exciting.

Cabo San Lucas, our last port, was on tap for this morning. We boarded a tender for the short trip to the pier and arrived to a parade of vendors. Sorry, no dinero. We walked through the town most of the day and jumped on a glass-bottom boat to see the colorful tropical fish. The rock formations in the bay were splendid and serve as homes to the many sea lions that inhabit the area. The Carnival departs at four o'clock and leaves the very beautiful and very expensive port of Cabo San Lucas.

We sail up the coast of Baja Sur toward Long Beach and arrive promptly at seven in the morning after a last stop at the buffet. What a fun cruise!

Back in L.A.

We were meeting my old friend, Sandra Miller, in Pasadena for lunch. We chose to meet at Green Street Restaurant in Pasadena very near the famed Pasadena Playhouse and the fabulous Huntington Gardens. As is tradition when I share lunch with Sandra at Green Street, we always order Karen's Grilled Club and of course, the house specialty, Dianne Salad. Sandra and I go back to early days of Harcourt when we were colleagues in sales management and I even reported to her for a period of time. She always seems to be privy to the latest gossip from Thomson and Pearson. She left publishing about a year ago and has since been looking to move to a real business. I'm confident she'll have every success.

After a very satisfying lunch we stopped at Vroman's Bookstore on Colorado Boulevard, one of the best bookstores in the west. Next to the Tattered Cover in Denver and Powell's in Portland, Vroman's is my favorite. Vroman's was founded in 1894 and has been a area landmark ever since. I found a new offering on the Civil War entitled Fields of Honor written by Edwin Bearss, Historian Emeritus of the National Park Service. I'm looking forward to reading his interpretation of the significant battles that took almost seven hundred lives.

On Monday, the twenty-first, we left our room at Fort MacArthur and decided to spend the day at the Huntington Library and Gardens. Originally the residence of Henry E. Huntington it was designed by Los Angeles architects Myron Hunt and Elmer Grey. It was built during the years 1909-1911. Most of the interiors are modeled on French and English rooms of the 18th century. The craftsmanship and design in the interiors are of outstanding quality, and the rooms provide a worthy setting for the collection. The Main Gallery was added in 1934 and houses the gallery's most famous works: Gainsborough's Blue Boy and Lawrence's Pinkie.

In addition to numerous galleries displaying American and English pieces, the Huntington has a fantastic collection of manuscripts and first editions. We thoroughly enjoyed our day at the Huntington and encourage a visit when you are in the area. Oh and by the way, they have a nice restaurant and tea house on the property and in the spring and summer the gardens are beautiful. Tomorrow we begin the next phase of our trip as we head east to Arizona.

It Was a Bad Day in the Desert

We left Long Beach at nine in the morning anticipating a leisurely six hour drive to Phoenix. Everything seemed to be operating according to plan until we passed the town of Quartzsite, Arizona. Suddenly, the van began to shutter and then completely die on the highway. I was able to move the car off the highway and unto an off-ramp. Here we were in the middle of the desert with a broken down van that had just been "repaired" at a cost of $4,000. Thankfully, I had the foresight to include towing and labor on my insurance policy (one of the few times I have had foresight!) and so I called USAA and they dispatched a tow truck to tow us the remaining one hundred and thirty miles to Phoenix. This time I thought it best that we have the van looked at a Ford dealer. We arrived at Earnhardt Ford about six o'clock that evening and spoke with Bill, the service writer, who told us the car would be analyzed first thing in the morning. The tow truck driver drove us to our hotel in Tempe, the Towne Place Suites, and we quickly checked in and crossed the street to the Claim Jumper, a mighty fine place to eat if you're hungry.

On Wednesday we were informed by Bill that they had determined the problem and that additional repairs would cost $1600.00. What options did I have? "Go ahead", I reluctantly responded. That afternoon we walked to the Arizona Mills and decided to see a movie. There Will be Blood with Daniel Day-Lewis was excellent and he will likely garner an academy award for his outstanding performance.

That evening Dan and Erin LaChapelle picked us up and we joined them for dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant in Scottsdale, Lo Cascio. Lo Cascio is family owned and I have always enjoyed dining there, the food is always excellent, the fresh- from-the-oven bread is mouth-watering and the service is always outstanding. Sara, the owner, is always on hand to greet the regulars and after dining here for over a decade whenever I'm in town, I feel like a regular. It is always, of course, great to see Dan and Erin and spend time with their little one, Lucas. Dan worked for me for a couple of years and then left Thomson for a management position at Pearson. He was truly one of the best sales reps I ever had the privilege of working with. Most all, Dan is a great guy and I feel very blessed to share his and Erin's friendship. They're just the best. Scottsdale is out of this world, upscale condos being built everywhere you look and new business sprouting over night. What a great place to live if you have the dough.

We're still waiting for the van. In the meantime, John and Mary Zaichkin, best friends in Chandler, picked us up for dinner and we met their son Lyle at the Firebird Restaurant in Chandler. I chose buffalo meatloaf and it was excellent. It was good to see my old friends; it's hard to believe I was in their wedding over thirty-three years ago. Lyle is a great kid and is doing very well at Countrywide Mortgage despite the problems that have beset the industry. We parted and planned on meeting them at their home in the morning before heading home. The weather was great, a light jacket was all that was needed.

It's Friday and the car is ready for pick-up. Bill has assured me that they have repaired all of the lingering problems and that we're good to go. We drove to John and Mary's and after a brief visit bid farewell and jumped back in our all-but-new car. Only one problem, when I started the van, it reacted in the exact same manner - no reverse, forward a few feet and then nothing - dead! I was in total shock and immediately called Bill who instructed us to once again have the car towed back to Earnhardt's (do you think the insurance comapny is going to be happy?). Of course, this being a Friday, the dealer won't even look at the car until Monday morning. Later that night we were back at the Towne Place Suites totally exhausted and completely frustrated.

Saturday we met Jeff and Jen, my nephew and niece and their son, Brendan for our long anticipated visit to Oregano's. One of the few things I really almost insist on doing when I visit Arizona is having pizza at Oregano's. In my opinion, the make absolutely the best thin-crusted pizza in the world. Also, the salads are fantastic and what a variety. I guess a lot of folks feel the same way about Oregano's, there's always a long wait. The weather was beautiful so we ate on the patio and enjoyed the Arizona sun. Today was also my birthday and it was a good day, especially since the grandchildren called to wish me well.

John and Mary graciously invited us to stay at their lovely home until are car was repaired. What lifesavers and what great friends. The next day the weather turned sour, cold and rainy. We joined Mary and John, our gracious hosts, for breakfast at their usual Sunday morning spot, Brunchies. Brunchies is a very popular breakfast place and of course, we waited for a table. It was a good choice, mostly regulars.

Monday morning, what's with my car? It appears, according to Bill, that they have the finest mechanics at Earnhardt's working nonstop to find the cause of our problems. Two days later on Wednesday, I hear the news. Yes, they have discovered the problem and everything will be just fine - ready to go tomorrow morning. It seems that the problem all along was a corroded powertrain control module (don't ask me what the hell a PCM is, but I'm quite certain it's important). The most outrageous piece of the puzzle is that it turns out that the liklihood of needing a new transmission and all of the other issues was extremely remote. The PCM was most likely sending error messages to the computer indicating various problems that really didn't exist. Well, anyway, they fixed it and we're on our way, six thousand dollars later! Oh, yes, I did call the garage in San Diego. The manager let me know that, though they were very sorry for my misfortune, there was no evidence that the transmission wasn't faulty and since the old transmission was no longer available, there really wasn't much that could be done. He did, however, promise to reimburse me the generous sum of two hundred and ninety-five dollars! What a nightmare.

And finally....home again!

Mary and John have been wonderful hosts and we felt very comfortable in their beautiful home, but it was time to leave. Our plan was to drive north on US-93 to Wickenburg and then unto Las Vegas where we would spend two nights prior to driving home. We arrived in Wickenburg in time for lunch and after a quick bite, we continued on our way. It's about a five hour drive from Phoenix to Las Vegas through mostly desert terrain until you reach Boulder Dam. Boulder Dam is undergoing some massive renovations and it's slow going as you pass the dam. However, it is a sight to behold and we stopped briefly to look at the gigantic structure and take the prerequisite photos. Boulder Dam also known as Hoover Dam and is a concrete arch-gravity type, in which the water load is carried by both gravity action and horizontal arch action. If you're interested in learning more about this man-made wonder check out the neat website at http://www.usbr.gov/lc/hooverdam/.

Hey, guess what? After two nights in Vegas, delaying our return to snow country, we can no longer postpone the inevitable. We arise bright and early on Saturday and head north on I-15. We arrived home late on Saturday afternoon and found our house virtually snow-bound. Still, we are glad to be home. It was a fun-filled trip despite the car problems and it was great to see good friends again. In fact, it was so good to leave Utah in January that decided to leave again in a couple of weeks. This time we will head back to sunny California and take another cruise to some different Mexican seaside villages. Who knows? We may even see you soon!