How I Spent My Winter Vacation - Part Four

February 10 was my last full day in San Diego. My plans for the day had changed rapidly. Originally I was to meet Judy and Lisa, two women I knew from our mutual love of Owen/Cristina, in the morning. Lisa was taking the train from LA and Judy would pick up both of us and we'd eat. But then Judy's kids got sick and so did she.

So Lisa and I tried to figure out how to meet up - and I tried to figure out what to do with the rest of my day. When Judy started feeling better, it became more complicated. Part of me wanted to see more of San Diego, but honestly, I had been doing a lot of walking and exploring and didn't really feel up to figuring out the bus system. I could have rented a car, but the California freeway system looks pretty complex and intimidating.

Judy felt better so we eventually settled on meeting for supper. I decided I would make things simpler by not exploring San Diego. Polina suggested that I walk to the Mission Trails Regional Park nearby, and that turned out to be a great idea.

So I walked half an hour to the park. I found the environment very interesting - most of my life has been lived in northern climates. (I checked Google Maps - San Diego is actually the farthest south I have even travelled).


The park has a visitor's centre. A volunteer encouraged me to follow a path around the centre, which he said he could do in 45 minutes and he was "an old guy". He also assured me it was safe for a lone woman to be walking on and suggested I visit the Grinding Rocks.

He also gave me a guide to native plant life around the centre. This is made in the tradition of the Kumeyaay and was on the grounds.

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How I Spent My Winter Vacation - Part Three

February 9 was another beautiful day in San Diego. By this point, I'd forgotten what bitter cold feels like. We went to a restaurant with a gluten-free menu - 's daughter is celiac and was thrilled to have another GF person visiting. The GF cinnamon roll pancakes were awesome. Before heading out to the zoo, I took pictures of clover. Because I was in love with all the greenness of San Diego.

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How I Spent My Winter Vacation - Part Two

The original reason to go to San Diego was the Mermaid Marathon. I thought it would be a good reason to get up and start moving after surgery in the fall. I chose the 5K race because I wasn't sure how much stamina I'd recover by race time.

What makes it a "mermaid" marathon is that 99% of the entrants were female, from a grand and wise mermaid in robes to lots of giggling mini-mermaids.

Since P lured me to San Diego for the marathon, she walked it with me. Starting early in the morning.


Surrounded by women in colourful tutus and mermaid leggings, we felt a little underdressed. :-) I did tie-dye my t-shirt for the race.

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How I Spent My Winter Vacation - Part One

This is how it will go - I'll post a recap of each day, with photos to illustrate, but I won't post all of the photos from each day at once. I will post the others one at a time, later, so I can still share them but not overwhelm one post with too many.

Note: the Jedi camera doesn't want to turn on, I tried it with two fully charged battery packs. I'll take it into a shop - it may be as simple as the date/time battery needing to be replaced. My point is, all of my photos were either taken with my Lumix or my cell phone.

I arrived in San Diego on February 6. My first flight, from Calgary to Los Angeles, was great. I watched Gravity then chatted with the older couple seated next to me. They were going to sightsee for a day, then board a cruise ship that would take them through the Panama Canal to Florida.

LAX is huge. And overwhelming. With the kindness of helpful people, I found my terminal for my next flight. When I went in search of my gate, I got whisked into a shuttle bus and was driven across across the airport to a smaller terminal with one fast food restaurant and no WiFi. #firstworldproblems.

My next flight was in partnership with WestJet. It was an American Eagle flight and cramped. My seatmate and I agreed that we should pull the window shade down and try to nap. This was definitely an economy flight.

P was at the San Diego airport, with her kids, Victoria and Andrew. I've known P for so long online that it wasn't weird settling into her minivan and talking as we drove through San Diego. San Diego is beautiful, by the way.

The next morning, everyone was at work or school. I had breakfast with a beautiful view of her backyard, and canyons and hills. And a hummingbird hovering around these flowers.

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2012 in Review

1. What did you do in 2012 that you'd never done before?
Bought a house. Went to Las Vegas. Went to the Grand Canyon.

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't think I made any. I don't usually make them.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
No.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No, thankfully.

5. What countries did you visit?
The US of A.

6. What would you like to have in 2013 that you lacked in 2012?
Passionate sex.

7. What dates from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
February 27 - taking possession of the house. February 28 - moving day. July 11 - an explosion at work.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Becoming a homeowner.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Leaving too much of the packing to the last minute.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yep. I sprained my right knee in the spring and injured my left rotator cuff in the fall.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
A two bedroom townhouse.

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
My sister, for getting me to go on vacation with her, and I had a lot more fun than I expected to. She accepts me and validates me like nobody else has.

13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Anyone who shot another person (excluding in self-defense).

14. Where did most of your money go?
The house.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
My garden.

16. What song(s) will always remind you of 2012
Call Me Maybe, The Water is Wide, Now Westlin Winds

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
I. happier or sadder? Both.
II. richer or poorer? Well, I have more assets. And less disposable income.
III. fatter or thinner? I think I'm a little thinner, since cutting down on gluten.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Packing, in January.

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Waiting to see if my course reimbursement papers had been received.

20. How will you be spending the holidays?
I went to Edmonton and spent Christmas with my sister and her family.

21. How will you be spending New Year's?
I watched movies and I lit sparklers in my backyard at midnight.

22. Did you fall in love in 2012?
No.

23. How many one-night stands?
None.

24. What was your favourite TV program?
The New Girl. Grey's Anatomy plummeted in my personal ratings.

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
No.

26. What was the best book you read?
Wheat Belly by William Davis.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
I already knew Kevin McKidd had a good voice, but The Speyside Sessions, which he had a hand in, is fantastic and expanded my knowledge of Scottish folk music.

28. What did you want and get?
A house. A garden.

29. What did you want and not get?
We didn't have time to see Donny & Marie in Las Vegas.

30. What was your favourite films of this year?
The Hobbit. I really enjoyed Brave, but it lost me during the middle because of where the plot went.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I just went to work. I went out to lunch with coworkers. I was 46 (still am).

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
I should've dug out my light therapy box in September, to combat Seasonal Affective Disorder. I've been feeling depressed this fall and that needs to stop.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2012?
Same as usual - comfortable.

34. What kept you sane?
My sister, my friends, my kitties, my garden.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Kevin McKidd.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
Not wanting the Wildrose Party to take power in the provincial election. They are too conservative and clearly have issues with same-sex marriages and abortion. They didn't take power. I voted PC for the first time, as it was the best vote against the incumbent Wildrose member. Wildrose won by 26 votes.

37. Whom did you miss?
My family to the East, particularly my oldest nephew.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Sarah. a coworker who calls me Sunshine and hugs me a lot. I'm not happy she's leaving.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2012
I need to remember to bloom where I am planted.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
May it be the shadow's call
Will fly away
May it be you journey on
To light the day
When the night is overcome
You may rise to find the sun

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Mandalay Bay Aquarium

Yeah, I know, I'm way past due on posting Las Vegas pictures. Sometimes there are just so many to go through!

Once we had set the date, my sister and I started thinking of what we wanted to do in Las Vegas. I decided to look up aquariums, and discovered there was one at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino. That went on my To Do list. Mary-Anne likes mermaids and aquariums too, so that's where we went on Tuesday morning.

I'd never ridden a monorail before, but we ended up taking two to get to the hotel. It was quite a hike through the hotel but we persevered and got there.

Well worth the trip.


The first levels of the aquarium had reptiles and some fish.


Komodo dragon.














Whoever thought of putting tunnels through aquariums is a genius.




Imagine this being part of your work day - diving through an aquarium.






There was a touch tank. These guys are rubbery.


Mary-Anne said this was a Star Wars creature. It does remind me of the Millenium Falcon.


Lionfish! It was hanging like this, I did not forget to rotate the photo.








In the latter part, there was a huge shark reek in a tank. I decided that when I win the lottery, I will build an impressive aquarium, and it will be built in such a way to make the fish very easy to photograph, without glare on the glass.






I had a lot of fun playing with my bounce flash and trying to get great pictures. There was another tunnel through the reef.




We saw other people trying to get photos with sharks in the backgorund. Mary-Anne suggested that she sit in the tunnel and I just experiment and see what I got. She never looked behind her, she just looked around.

She had no idea this was there.


My favourite.


I really, really loved this experience.


Of course we stopped in the gift shop. I had to have this glass seahorse. The clerks wrapped it in many layers of bubble wrap for the flight home, and it arrived perfectly intact.

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Vegas baby - Flamingo Hotel Wildlife Habitat

Outside the hotel was a wildlife habitat. Of course there were flamingos!















Mary-Anne's favourite colour is purple.

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Vegas baby - The Flamingo Hotel

My sister and I stayed at the Flamingo Hotel as part of a package. A little worn around the edges, but a nice hotel, and centrally located. This is Barbie's our bathroom from the Go Room.
 



The first night, we wandered around the casino and found a '50's style diner. Complete with jukeboxes that played songs for a nickel. I thought they were just for show but Mary-Anne proved me wrong.



We also found some shops. Featuring this unbelievable sweater. No, I didn't buy one.



Didn't buy any of these.



Totally got a pink flamingo Christmas ornament. I ended up buying many ornaments, guess I'm putting a tree up this year!



This is more of what I expected to see. I was taking a picture of the legs, and a passing dude said, "You want your picture taken with those, right?" Sure!



Our hallway.



The view from our room.



The adults only pool. Because of the liquor being served. To our surprise, it closed at 6 at night. So Thursday and Friday, we got out of bed early in order to get our swim on. There were also hot tubs. I loved swimming in that pool, and going under the waterfalls.



If we'd had a free night, we would have totally seen this show.



In fact, our first night in the lobby, someone tried to give us free tickets to the show. She had passes for a variety of shows. Because I was single, she focused on me, wanted to know my salary range (I lied). We kept waiting to see what the catch was, to get free tickets. Mary-Anne caught on faster - I'd have to go to a "presentation" at another hotel about time shares. We passed on the free tickets, despite the salesperson's attempts to guilt us. We didn't have enough time to be browbeat about something neither of us had any intention of buying.

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