2023 Autumn Journey

Saturday, October 21 dawns as a warm and leaf dropping day. We are packed and ready to leave home by 9:00 and darling Darcy arrives 3 minutes early, accompanied by her faithful companion Norman the dog, to take us to the airport to start what will undoubtedly be a long 24 hours of travel. We have three bags to check: one with Deb’s clothes, one with Mark’s clothes and one with gifts and loot for the Highland family, whose home in Ireland we are going to visit as part of our adventures. We check the bags all the way through to Leeds, U.K., our final destination for this first week.

We leave on time from Eppley Airfield in Omaha, headed for O’Hare in Chicago and then onward to Liberty Airfield in Newark New Jersey. The schedules all work out fine, no rushing from terminal to terminal, and we even score a slight upgrade in Newark as we board the 777 for Dublin. Most of the flights are full, with the exception of the Newark to Dublin leg, which is probably about 60% capacity. We arrive in Dublin at 7:00 AM local time and then find a lounge to rest for a few hours prior to our final leg from Dublin into Leeds.

The food was non-existent on any flights except the over the water leg to Dublin. We both opted for the cheese stuffed pasta over the chicken on offer. It was fair, but not award winning. The wine however was gratis, so that made the dinner a little more palatable. The morning sandwich of egg and cheese on a hamburger roll was horrible! The cheese appeared to be onions and not cheese and the egg patty surely never saw the back end of a chicken. We each took one bite and stopped. Did we mention the coffee was undrinkable, this even for Deb who normally doses hers up with milk and sweetener.

Needless to say, we were glad to find a lounge in the Dublin Airport just a few steps away from our next gate. We talked our way in, even though Deb didn’t bring the proper entry card. We rested, had some excellent coffee and juice, together with a scone and some raspberry jam.

The announcement for our flight to Leeds was made at 9:55 so we headed to the gate for loading. We learned that we were boarding a bus to take us to the aircraft. Out we go across the tarmac and pull up to a 70 passenger propeller plane - we hadn’t been in a prop for years. The trip was smooth over the Irish Sea and we landed in Leeds 45 minutes later. We were tired; Mark did not sleep on the overnight flight and Deb only managed a couple of hours. We were cranky and tired of airports, this was our 5th in less than 24 hours.

Did you catch the rooky travel mistake we’d made? You might recall that in the first paragraph above we described our packing. We have known, and usually try and practice spreading our packing over both suitcases, some underwear, socks and a shirt for each of us in each suitcase. Well, this time we weren’t paying attention and we are paying the priced. Mark’s suitcase is amongst the missing. (Son Jake will be quickly sending an “I told you so” message; he counseled us to purchase some Apple Air Tags for the luggage, but I poopooed the idea.) 

The errant bag may actually still be in Leeds, or at any of the other 4 airports we visited. Leeds had a plane slide off the runway in a storm last week. No one was injured, but they were forced to close the airport for a few days and the luggage stacked up. There was one large room filled with bags, although we didn’t see our missing one. I know, I know Jake; if I had installed an air tag I could have found the bag if it was there. We filled out a “missing person” report and are hoping that it shows in the next week. For the moment, Mark will be rinsing his underwear and wearing a long sleeved tee-shirt of Deb’s (suitably uni-sex looking but he is not picky.)

We then proceeded to National Car Rental to pick up our ride for the next week, a nice 4-door SUV on the small side, with only 426 miles on the odometer. Our lodging for this week is the Low Mill Guest House in Bainbridge, a small village tucked into the Yorkshire Dales National Park. We picked this village as we had driven through it a number of times last year on our visit and decided to home base in the same general area.

The drive to Bainbridge was about an hour and one half, the weather was perfect and the traffic was relatively light. The area has received lots of rain in the last few weeks, and many of the rivers had flooded over their banks. It was wonderful so see and hear the rushing water in the rivers and brooks as we drove along. Our original plan was to stop and find some shirts, socks and underwear for Mark, but after arriving, we were too tired. We bought a bottle of wine and some soda water, broke out the red hot pretzels we had stashed as a snack, and we were down for the count by 6:00 - a very long day, but we ended up right where we want to be.

Arizona, Monday, March 6, 2023

It is warming up in South Central Arizona. Temperatures up to mid-60’s this Sunday. After a slow start, we loaded up the host’s vehicle and headed to Litchfield Park, some 30 miles to the south and west of our Anthem location. Some comments on Phoenix in general: traffic is heavy at the quietest of times and rush hour is a nightmare. With a metropolitan population of nearly 5 million and all of them impatiently wanting to get some where, driving is a joy. Geographically, Phoenix is the 11th largest, both in population and in area, in the U.S. Unless you are traveling to the neighborhood grocery store, any trip is 10 miles or more. Although they are building a light rail system, commute times between the various areas is an easy 45-60 minutes.

We pointed the vehicle south to Litchfield Park for an Arts and Crafts fair. Our actual destination was Wigwam Resort, one of the oldest and largest Senior living developments in the area.We arrived around noon and the area was crawling with people - mostly old (like us!) We walked in and out and up and down, looking at all the wares and crafts. Food stalls galore with everything from street tacos to barbecues to “fresh” lobster and seafood. Eventually we stopped into a sports bar, The Lazy Palm Sports Grill. We enjoyed a couple of chicken salad sandwiches, some chicken strips and sides of fries and potato salad, washed down with some beer and fruity Prosecco. We enjoyed the various basketball games on the multiple TV sets, and stretched out our stay to watch the finish of the Nebraska-Iowa contest, which Nebraska won! Deb ended up with a new “spring” purse as the only purchase of the day; the afternoon was enjoyable. 

We motored north back to Anthem for cocktails and a soak in the hot spa - our first of this entire trip. We then enjoyed the Sennentz hospitality as Dell grilled a huge side of salmon and Karen prepared a salad and some boiled potatoes. Good food and a quiet evening.

Monday morning we rolled out at our normal time (retirement makes all the days run together.) Without work or kids to schedule, we never know what day of the week it is unless we have a radio, newspaper nearby or television playing. Lounging around during the morning, we visited, read, completed a few work phone calls, and generally acted as if we were on vacation. In the middle afternoon, Dell proposed a drive to get us out of the house and away from the sunny patio. It seems a few of us pale white types were getting a bit over cooked. 

We headed south again, past downtown Phoenix to South Mountain. This is a municipal owned area known as South Mountain Park, the second largest municipal park in the world! We drove up the winding road to the Dobbins Point observation area for a view of the Salt River Valley and the entire Phoenix Metro laid out at our feet. A stunning site. We then drove back through downtown Phoenix noting the tall buildings interspersed with squat, typically southwester structures We passed the Phoenix Art Museum and the Heard Museum, both of which will make interesting day trips on our next visit.

We returned home just at sunset, enjoyed a cocktail and then Dell fired up the grill again. This evening we dined on huge filet mignon and fettuccine Alfredo with some steamed vegetables with cheese sauce, again a most filling meal. We watched a movie, read, and poured ourselves into bed around 11:00.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, is our travel day. We will return to Omaha with memories of 4inches of snow, cool to freezing temperatures, sunshine and a soak in the hot tub, and hours upon hours of visiting and eating with good friends. Not bad for a pair of aging freeloaders from the plains. Thanks to both sets of hosts; we never felt uneasy nor intrusive. We will be glad to return if they allow. As always, we will be happy to arrive home to our usual routine of eating, reading, watching TV and starting over again. Thanks.

Arizona 2023, Saturday, March 4, 2023

Friday morning was another bright and sunny day in Tucson. Today is a travel day. We were all packed up prior to breakfast. This morning we dined on fresh fruit, cereal, a bagel and cups of coffee. The previous evening, we had received an invitation from Mark And Kip, our fellow dinner guests, to visit and view their home in a nearby subdivision.  The four of us motored the 15 minutes over to see the most wonderful home we had seen in years. A much larger home than Casa T&K but without the mountain view. A glorious front courtyard complete with a stretch of green Astroturf, lemon trees, and cacti.

The kitchen had been newly remodeled with new countertops, double ovens and a beautiful gas cooktop. Bedrooms were much larger and, as both men work from home, they were outfitted with full offices, including multiple monitors and music, along with beds and toys for both cats who were lounging in haughty disregard for the visitors. The pool area was wonderful- Mark was enamored with the solar powered Roomba-like skimmer puttering over the surface and Deb was astounded by the outside shower tucked around the corner, which was also accessible from the master bath adjacent. Said master bath included a huge walk-in double shower and boasted a pair of walk-in closets, each seemingly larger than our bedroom back in Omaha. We were suitably impressed with their home - and we walked away with a batch of both regular and Meyer lemons, from their garden trees.

Back home , Tom ordered a large pizza from the neighborhood Rosatti’s Pizza store and went to pick it up just as George and Karen arrived from their 2 1/2 hour drive down from Phoenix. We shoveled in our pizza, Tom and Kevin gave Dell and Karen a tour of their home and we then said our goodbyes before we headed back up the road to Phoenix. We once again offered heartfelt thanks to Kevin and Tom for the gracious and generous hospitality and putting up with our freeloading ways. Another enjoyable, and surprising, winter visit.

The trip north on I-10 was fraught with the normal problems. An accident at about the 70 mile marker forced us off the route and onto smaller roads. We made a a detour around the east side of Phoenix, stopping for a fuel and restroom break at the local Costco store. We arrived in Anthem at the Casa Sennentz around 6:00 and unloaded the vehicle, dragging our luggage into the new sleeping rooms. As March 1 was Dell’s birthday, Mark had brought him his customary gift of a bottle of Single Malt Scotch, this time a bottle of Auchentoshan, an Islay of distinct flavor derived from its maturation in three separate casks, Bourbon, Olorosso and PX Sherry. After sampling this wonderful scotch along with preparation of a dirty martini and a margarita for the ladies, Dell prepared and cooked some hamburgers on the grill while Karen prepared some ham and beans to accompany them. We rolled into bed, well fed and watered.

The next morning we were up and “rarin’ to go.” Deb completed some morning work while Dell and Mark headed off in the Mustang convertible for the CVS store and the local Ace hardware to run some errands. We were each on our own to raid the larder for lunch,: Dell opted for some re-heated pork ribs he found in the refrigerator, Karen sliced up some not too great tomato and layered it over some cottage cheese, Mark sliced up a leftover cold hamburger and covered it in with kosher dill spears and some ranch dressing on bread. Deb had some toast and peanut butter accompanied by a chocolate caramel macadamia nuts treat.

We napped and read in the afternoon before cocktails on the patio. This evening we drove to Cave Creek area to try a new restaurant we had found on Open Table called Ofrenda’s. Deb tried a house special Watermelon Margherita which seemed acceptable as it soon disappeared. The Mexican fare was authentic, and we chose a smothered chicken enchilada, s couple of pates of dinner tacos and a new to us chicken enchilada smothered in Suiza sauce - a cream and lightly spiced tomatillo sauce. We finished up with a shared set of churros with a caramel sweetened dipping sauce. The drive home was uneventful and we arrived by 7:30, ready for a little TV watching, conversation and reading. all were retired at a normal 10:00. No late nights for this batch of septuagenarians. Happy to see our old friends again, we pronounced this a couple of smooth days.

Arizona - Thursday, March 2, 2023

As noted in yesterday’s post, we awoke this morning to 3-4 inches of snow blanketing the patio, cacti, and xeriscape. The pink Catalina mountains from the evening before were covered and white - quite a spectacle. Neighbors report that this is the most snow in their 24 years here in Tucson. An astounding experience for our sunny southwest sojourn. The snow was gone by 11:00 in the morning and the sun was out, although the temperature never rose much over the upper 50’s.

Needless to say, we stayed close to the Casa T&K until middle afternoon. The brand new coffee maker decided that the workout we were giving it was too much. This caused a trip to Best Buy for a trade-in replacement. As long as we were out, we stopped at Crate & Barrel, West Elm, and Williams Sonoma to see all the paraphernalia we would not buy and did not need. Nothing on offer that we were willing to haul or ship home. Besides, that would occasion a discussion of what to throw out in order to make room for any new stuff.

Tom & Kevin had invited their friends Mark and Kip to join us for dinner. Mark & Kip are also transplanted Omahans who are still gainfully employed but working from home most times. During the conversations, we discovered a number of mutual friends and acquaintances - really a small world after all. Kevin prepared a macaroni and cheese with mock crab casserole accompanied by peas and a delightful salad. We had cheese, crackers and salami for hors d’oeuvres, some nice dirty vodka martinis, and conversation before our meal. 

All said and done, the snow melted, the Catalinas turned pink at sunset and all was again right with the world.