First day in Iceland: Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Sunrise, from our fifth floor apartment.  Sunrise at 10:37 a.m.; sunset at 3:53 p.m.  By the end of our trip, on December 3, the times were 10:51 a.m. and 3:43 p.m.  

Much of Iceland's fresh produce is grown in geothermal greenhouses.  Behind Papa Tom, you can see PVC pipes through which naturally hot water is piped, keeping the greenhouse at a comfortable 73 degrees or so.  We partook of fresh tomato soup made on the premises.  You could pick fresh basil leaves to add to your soup from a plant on your table. Talk about locally grown!

Too full after delicious tomato soup made with caraway seeds and hot artisan bread and butter to try the tomato ice cream, tomato cheesecake, or green tomato/apple pie.

Pressure gauges for the geothermal water, pumped from a hot spring on the property.  Bumblebees live in the greenhouse and pollinate the plants.

Tools of the tomato pickers' trade.  This greenhouse ships one ton of tomatoes per day to the rest of Iceland.

Merry Christmas from Iceland!

Back to the snowy reality outside!

Visiting with the Horns (Saturday, November 25, 2017)

Lunch at Mandola's on a beautiful, sunny afternoon

Sweet Joyce!

Thanksgiving with the Howells (November 23, 2017)

Sarah, Lucy, and me

Beautiful view from Martha and Craig's dining room window (November 22, 2017)

Pelicans splash and geese sun on the shore outside Martha and Craig's house. 

Early Thanksgiving in Shreveport (Tuesday, November 21, 2017)

Thanks for the selfie, Colton.

The Sistas

"TO OPEN BAG: Insert one finger from each hand in holes.  With even force, pull one hole to the right and the other hole to the left until bag starts opening."  Just like the unwritten instruction after using a dryer in a public restroom after washing hands is "Wipe hands on pants," the unwritten instruction here is "Cut bag open with knife."

Dad carves the turkey while Tom mashes potatoes.

Destry, Colton, and Kealy

Thanks, Charles, for doing most of the dishes after lunch

After school on the Brentwood Elementary playground (November 7, 2017)

Fox and friends Knox and Penelope turned me into an autumn tree.

Lots of leaves!

Fox's hair creation for me

Emma's mini-me (November 3, 2017)

Fox has wanted a hair style like Emma's for a long time.

Almost there

Ta-da!

Happy Halloween from Portland (October 31, 2017)

What's Deadpool doing at LaWanda and Otis's house?

Soon to be unmasked

Almost there

Our hero!

Happy Halloween from Austin!

The Corpse Bride and the Joker

Fox carved this jack-o-lantern with help from Anjanette, who did the eyes.

Jack-o-lantern and skull lights

Treats for Mario

Rainy and chilly night!  We shut down early to watch the Astros in the World Series.

Zilker Botanical Gardens (October 30, 2017)

Met former co-worker Sarah Ramos for a walk through the Zilker Botanical Gardens.  Sarah, who retired a year ago, is finishing up the theology degree she started while still an Administrative Law Judge  Very centered and positive person to spend a morning with!

Must plant some of these at our house to attract more butterflies.

Don't know what these are but love the color.  Will show the photo to someone at a local nursery to find out.

Mama Mae Peterson (October 27, 2017)

Emma played the possessive Mama Mae Peterson in 'Bye Bye, Birdie."  She did not approve of her son Albert's attempts at age 33 to cut the apron strings. (I hope it was okay to use your Facebook photos, Joyce.)

Mama Mae uses her most persuasive tone with Albert "Sonny Boy" Peterson

"Bye Bye, Birdie" (October 27, 2017)

Papa Tom, Fox, and I drove to Waco after school on Friday, October 27, to see the Horns and Emma's performance in "Bye Bye, Birdie."  She was hilarious as Mama Mae Peterson, the overbearing mother of the main character, straight from Brooklyn.  For all these years, I thought rock-and-roll heartthrob Conrad Birdie had been played by Elvis in the 1963 film.  Not so.  But the story is based on the effect Elvis's induction in the U.S. Army had on teen-aged girls.

After the play, we had dinner at Cheddar's.

Emma transformed into herself after the play, thank goodness.  Dinner with Mama Mae Peterson would have been . . . interesting.  Next year, Emma will be at Centenary College in Shreveport as a pre-law and voice major. 

Homeward bound. . . eventually! (October 22, 2017)

Despite stormy weather, we arrived in Houston from Albuquerque in time to change planes.  But our aircraft to Austin had mechanical difficulties and had to be towed to the hangar for a look-see.  Departure times changed from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. to 3:55 p.m. to (finally!) 3:10 p.m.  Yes, they decided on an earlier time; we wondered if passengers had wandered off for a sandwich thinking the 3:55 p.m. time was correct.  Anyway, after we got on board, the pilot and co-pilot sat in their seats flipping through an instruction manual (yikes!); got up to chat with ground personnel and flight attendants, and finally revved the engines.  As we took off, unsecured drink cans rolled down the aisle.  I was happy to get off that Halloween preview flight!  Got home at 5:30 p.m. instead of 11:20 a.m.

Albuquerque, New Mexico (October 21, 2017)

Albuquerque was founded in 1706, 70 years before the American colonies declared independence from Britain.  Spanish conquistadors were in the area in the 1500s, long before the town was founded. Don Francisco Fernandez de la Cueva Enriquez, Duke of Albuquerque, must have had a tiny signature or a very long signature line.

Cheryl and I dropped Papa off at the Albuquerque airport on Saturday afternoon as he had to get back to Austin for work on Sunday.  We explored Old Town.  Here's Cheryl in the gazebo in the town square.  The cannons are from another era. 

Tree on the grounds of San Felipe de Neri church.  The church has been in continuous use since it's 1706 founding by Franciscan friars.

Color everywhere! I've heard of people chained to their desks but not benches chained to the sidewalk.  

This bride-to-be (or bride that was?) is ready for Dia de los Muertos, coming up on November 2, 2017.

Adobe home/business

Bench, art, wall

After an afternoon in Old Town, we took in sunset at the very hip Level 5 tapa bar.  The Sandia peaks are gray in the daytime but pink at sunset.  We learned that "sandia" means "watermelon."

Did you get your card from Ojo?

Papa and I thought about all of you (grownups too!) while we were in Ojo.  We enjoyed writing notes to each grandchild, grand-niece, and grand-nephew, and mailing them from the tiny Ojo post office.  Did you notice the National Parks stamp on your envelope?

Hmm.  What else should I say?