In April, I chose to drive the 1100 miles from the desert to Portland alone. I have always wanted to take a long road trip, solo. Mostly because I don't think driving for long periods is my forté. The first day I drove for 11 hours. Four hours in, the gas would be at quarter tank. I stopped, filled up, hit the necessary, stretched, walked for 5 minutes and began again. It wasn't bad. One of the things I really enjoyed was how the terrain changed from south to north. I snapped this image as I approached the mountains in northern California. It completely captures the essence of my trip.

Jane Pauley and Me!

The first time I recall seeing Jane Pauley was in 1985 when I was home on leave after having had my first child, Drew. She and Bryant Gumbel  kept us company in the mornings through all of our chores. Turns out she is about my age and has the same number and gender of children. It was fun to hear her tell her young adult children stories and totally get it. What a great sense of humor! She spoke in April at the Voices lecture series. The topic was "Reinventing Yourself after 50", which is a series she does on the today show. Most of the audience could relate as we approach that time in life when our children are grown, we have some time and a few bucks AND want to be useful. Afterward at the reception, a friend snapped this picture. How fun is that.

Two side comments.

If you have never heard of Voices, you should check it out. See the link above. Each season, there are lectures by "Four amazing women; four incredible stories." 2012-2013 marks the 20th season.

When asked for the secret to a long marriage, Jane deferred to her husband Garry Trudeau's thought "Leave two things unsaid each day." Solid advice for any relationship or so it seems.

A Rose by any other name must be a Lily

Caite and her girlfriends spent some time with us over spring break. They do know the way to a mom's heart...flowers. When these lilies arrived, they were tight buds. It was so much fun watching them open over the next few days, I have the perfect northern exposure window for snapping photos. This was taken a few days into the bloom and is one of my favs. Gorgeous, right!

Lemon Tree Very Pretty...

Imagine having your very own Myers lemon tree. I do. I hear they are a cross between an orange and a lemon. Whatever! The new fruit is beginning to appear so it is time to pick the old. To accomplish this task, I needed the assistance of some one much younger than me. We girls found our own solution...a lawn chair in the pool to stand on, reaching the perfect height to grab the lemons. YUMMO! 

I'm Learning Spanish and You Could Too!

I watched this U-tube video, actually a TED lecture, by Luis von Ahn, who is responsible for capthcas, those annoying little phrases that you have to type in to prove you are not a spammer. Turns out he is a really smart individual who is conjuring ways to use the 7.5 millions individuals 10 seconds per day to do something useful. Segue forward to his latest project, translating wikipedia into other languages besides English, and you too can help. That's how I am learning Spanish and it is fun and cool. It's at Duolingo.com. I am on my way.

Yo quiero vino. haha

Adios.