Feb 9, 2013 - Investors Business Daily Meetup

Today buddy and I woke to a beautiful blue sky, however; it was still very cold and the car was covered in frost. The hills surrounding the lake were still covered in snow. We drove south of the city for the investment group meeting. The meeting was very interesting and informative. After the meeting we slowly drove along the Pacific Coast Highway heading north. Some areas were pretty but most were simply commercial areas. There's no shortage of places to shop here. The images are part of the LA Area album.

Jan 13, 2012 - Marriott's Newport Coast Villas

Stayed at Marriott's Newport Coast Villas for seven nights in a timeshare exchange; we stayed in a 2 BR villa. This is an Interval International premiere resort that we acquired by exchanging one week with one of the timeshares we already own (WorldMark & Vacation Internationale). We love timesharing and we love exchanging timeshares with Interval International!!! Note: Our friends Stuart Young & Angela Young spent the weekend with us at the timeshare.

Dec 31, 2010 - Life at the Dunes

Life at the Dunes We are sitting in ‘the Neighborhood’ enjoying the effects of our newly installed blue flame ventless heater. The outside temperature is 39, we are at a toasty 84 at the ceiling and 64 at seating height. This heater is going to make our winter camping very comfortable. And quiet! We have had to dodge around another storm system or two this week. But we did manage to get a great canoe paddle around much of the harbor between weather issues. We also played tennis and got in a few good bike rides. So, we cannot really complain...

Dec 25, 2010 - tis the season

Tis the Season For Christmas Eve Day we went south to Nancy’s Aunt Lois and Uncle Wally’s. They were her parents’ best friends and even attended her birth. So, when she says she has known them all her life, you get the picture. We shared some great stories and laughs. We had spent the previous day preparing the meal. Nancy made a top shelf brisket and I added some enhanced garlic roasted mashed potatoes. She also put together her famous pear and blue cheese salad. Then she topped it all off with a new recipe for brown sugar torte. With all...

Dec 22, 2010 - The River is Rising, again

The River is Rising, again It has been raining day and night now for 6 days. The worst of this storm is to hit and spin on out of here today. Bout damn time! We normally live outdoors quite a bit of time. Not only because of our outdoor athletic activities but also we eat outside, read outside, and of course, cook outside. So far I have not driven Nancy over the edge, yet. It is not easy having to take my act indoors. And dodging rain bursts while we are out and about is getting old, too. But on the light side, we like being together, so we...

Dec 21, 2010 - Twas a few days before Christmas

Last night we had a fantastic dinner at Tom and Amy’s. The prime and Yorkshire pudding melted in our mouths. The conversation was warm and animated with the rain pouring down outside. It was just a great time. The day before, Ben and Karen let me trash their kitchen making a new dish, ‘Vegetable Peccadillo Chile Relleno.' This was the most complex meal I have ever made. The stuffing had 15 main ingredients, not including spices. Like I said, I trashed the kitchen. Ben was great, he kept busy cleaning up behind me and still managed to make a...

Dec 13, 2010 - Trying out our new rig.

We spent 3 days at Newport Dunes to try out our new home on wheels. We learned alot. We got to see the Newport Boat Parade for the first time. We grew up in So. California and this was our first trip to the Boat Parade. Would definately do it again. Space 1201

Dec 11, 2010 - On the Beach

Our drive in from our dry camping spot near Joshua Tree National Park was fairly smooth. However, we hit such a bad section on the 10 that the canoe carrier up top separated from its track. Bummer, we have carried the Nancy Gail up top for thousands of miles and through some terrible winds and storms without an incident. Then we come to California and onto some of the worst roads we have encountered. Certainly they are the worse for any large metro area we have passed through. The weather was perfect for the trip to Newport. The temps were...

Aug 14, 2010 - Parasailing Day

Becca only had a couple of requests for this vacation. One was to go parasailing. Today was the day for that. We headed for Newport Beach California and found someone who offerred that. We spent the early part of our day on the beach. The waves were huge! We really didn't go into the water to far because the undertow was vey strong and the waves were unpredictable. We spent some time walking their boardwalk and then it was time for parasailing. Elizabeth and I went along for the boat ride. We found out once we were out there Becca had to...

Jun 13, 2010 - San Juan Capistrano & Laguna Beach

About a 40 minute drive south led us to Mission San Juan Capistrano. Entering the gates of the Mission was like stepping into a different time and place. The view was mesmerizing. Every color of the rainbow was represented by the flowers and trees. One's mind and spirit were suddenly filled with an unexplainable peace. It is absolutely breath taking. The cool breeze of the Pacific wafted the purple petals of the Jacaranda trees to cover the green grass with a purple mat. The eroded brown adobe walls contrasted with the exposed red brick....

Jun 12, 2010 - Kayak Backbay Newport

We launched the kayaks about 9AM on the beach near Back Bay Estuary-the largest in southern California. It was an easy paddle and we followed the shoreline around. We spotted some few waterfowl and several jumping mullet. The wind and current were to our advantage the first half. We suddenly realized that signs posted in the waterway stated that a permit was required in order to kayak the area! Oops,we had already completed more than half our journey without incident. So we continued our travels and enjoyed the beautiful peaceful scenery....

May 20, 2010 - The real O.C.

OMG did I struggle to get out of bed this morning. Then when I did I felt like crying when I realised I had to pack my bag. That was a mission in itself, travelling, Disney Land and a shopoholic don't go well together. Once we have been to Walt Disney World too I will definatley be sending a Disney package home. We missed breakfast but made it out before checkout. We locked up our bags for the day we were going to the real O.C. Newport Beach. I ate chocolate chip cookies at the bus stop for breakfast. The bus ride was about 1.5 hours, but...