ALMOST

Almost what?

Well Daylight savings time ends on November 2! Halloween October 31!

Presidential Election - November 04, 2008

~~ For more Celebrations ~ Click Here!

My Computer Survived

Just a month ago I got a new PC and I was so thrilled…UNTIL

Just before I flew to LA, the darned thing started acting up… so much so that the Printer decided NOT to have anything to do with my requests.

So off to LA and my adventure!

Upon return my PC got more sluggish.

It got to the point it just plain Froze …SIGH

But to the credit of the Tech support we figured out what was the problem.

Seems AOL, even the program that says it will support Vista…does not work. Now the “BUG” is gone.

New Friends ;) Soon I can share WHY I was in LA! The Los Angeles River is a creek flowing through Los Angeles County, California, from Canoga Park in the west end of the San Fernando Valley, 51 miles (82 km) southeast to its mouth in Long Beach. For most of its length, it flows through a narrow concrete channel. Today, some environmental groups advocate the removal of concrete and the restoration of natural vegetation and wildlife.

Some History

~~~~~~~~~~~ Check out the Virtual Tour!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ What do you mean you didn't know there was a river in Los Angeles? Why not take the Target Science Los Angeles River Virtual Tour and see for yourself? Like modern-day Lewis and Clark explorers, you will be able to digitally navigate the river from the headwaters in the San Fernando Valley to the mouth of river in Long Beach, over 50 miles away. This will be a descriptive tour, showing you samples of the sights, plants, animals, architecture, and history along the way. There are twelve stopping points along the tour: Headwaters, First Channel, Convergence, Sepulveda Basin, Verdugo Wash, Los Feliz, Frogtown, Arroyo Seco fork, 4th Street Bridge, Rio Hondo fork, Lower river, and mouth of the river in Long Beach. At any point along the journey you can choose to back up, or continue down the river. If at any time you would like to learn more information about selected topics concerning the Los Angeles River, refer to the menu at the bottom of each page. Here you can learn more about the Plants, Animals, Birds, Microorganisms, Water Quality, Human Impact, History, and Art on the L.A. River

Meanwhile some pictures from outside the set of Criminal Minds. Also from behind the fence the LA River… and lunch with the Crew!

Southern California ;)

Venice Beach, California

Now that I gathered my composure, as well as my land legs.

I was in store for a total treat on Venice Beach.

I met a person that I have been in contact with for several years through a FOOD chat.

Needless to say that in itself was awesome.

Add to that I had the chance to walk on the sandy shore with the wind in my hair was magnificent.

After being in a sardine can for HOURS it was a delight.

Venice, California is known for being a trendsetting locale, and bodybuilding is certainly one of its most popular draws. It is why Venice is often referred to as Muscle Beach. It is said that California Governor (and former actor) Arnold Schwarzenegger heightened the interest in pumping iron when he relocated from Europe. Not only did he train at the world famous Gold's Gym in Venice, it was the site of the popular cult film, Pumping Iron, which introduced Schwarzenegger to the movie-going public.

Bodybuilding in Venice Beach , CA Memories of Muscle Beach

Birth of ” Venice of America” [1890-1906]

Venice Beach Cam

Later in the early evening she and I met up with her spouse and had dinner. The C & O Trattoria (C & O) has been open since 1969. Now a well known Venice Beach landmark, serving Northern Italian breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. It has become known for good food and friendly service in a relaxed garden setting.

The Killer Garlic Rolls were amazing!

Then we, she and I shared: Insalata Spinaci

Spinach, Goat Cheese, Flash Fried Prosciutto (Smoked Italian Style Ham), Roma Tomatoes and Roasted Pine Nuts. The portions are enormous. YUMMMMMM! For the main course I had tilapia, all I can say is that it was astonishing.

Two views of this Restaurant! C & O Trattoria Italian restaurant in Venice!

Editorial Review for C & O Trattoria – by Kelle Schillaci

The SceneRaucous "That's Amore" sing-alongs and honor-policy Chianti ensure there's always a boisterous throng of locals at this neighborhood trattoria. The warm, inviting patio is the place to be, while folks inside are packed sardine-style at tables covered with white paper tablecloths (replete with complimentary crayons).The FoodThe family-style dishes could feed a small army, even the most ravenous diner won't go hungry after these heaping portions. Huge ceramic troughs are filled to the brim with pasta; choose from 25 mix-and-match variations on traditional noodles and sauces. The meaty Bolognese is unbelievably rich, especially when paired with thick gnocchi dumplings. An indulgent cognac-spiked cream sauce blankets the fettuccine prosciutto. Other specialties include lush eggplant and Italian sausage lasagna, and provolone and rosemary chicken ravioli slathered in sweet tomato cream sauce. Dessert might be far-flung fantasy after these filling calorie-laden dishes, but true gluttons will enjoy the silky tiramisu.

WOW what a Whirlwind Week...OR ~~

My World This Past Week

JOIN HERE

OR my HEAD is in the CLOUDS [Pun intended, as you will soon see]

Neat reflections of something Fall is here POOFY Clouds

So here I was just hanging out being at home and enjoying the beginning of FALL

Hint…on one of the pictures … Environmental, yet another clue!

[Wind ~ key word!]

Then the most amazing turn of events began just last Wednesday.

This post is just about the amazing sights that I saw as I flew to the West Coast.

The most amazing clouds and the colors, even with the distortion from the plane window turned out awesome.

Heck I only took 86 pictures on this three day Adventure… ;)

I have been accused that my camera is my third arm!

Yes I will be drawing this Adventure out, but there is madness to my reasons. [Or visa versus] ;)

There is a teeny hint with the labels at the bottom of the posting.

HA the Thick Plottens TEE HEE

The Rocky Mountains are commonly defined as stretching from the Liard River in British Columbia south to the Rio Grande in New Mexico. Other mountain ranges continue beyond those two rivers, including the Selwyn Range in Yukon, the Brooks Range in Alaska, and the Sierra Madre in Mexico, but those are not part of the Rockies, though they are part of the American cordillera. The United States definition of the Rockies, however, includes the Cabinet and Salish Mountains of Idaho and Montana, whereas their counterparts north of the Kootenai River, the Columbia Mountains, are considered a separate system in Canada, lying to the west of the huge Rocky Mountain Trench, which runs the length of British Columbia from its beginnings in the middle Flathead River valley in western Montana to the south bank of the Liard River. The Rockies vary in width from 70 to 300 miles (110 to 480 kilometers). Also west of the Rocky Mountain Trench, farther north and facing the Muskwa Ranges across the Trench, are the Stikine Ranges and Omineca Mountains of the Interior Mountains system of British Columbia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountains

Then there was the GRAND CANYON, WOW!

The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided gorge carved by the Colorado River in the United States state of Arizona. It is largely contained within the Grand Canyon National Park — one of the first national parks in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt was a major proponent of preservation of the Grand Canyon area, and visited on numerous occasions to hunt and enjoy the scenery.

The canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles (6.4 to 29 km) and attains a depth of over a mile(1.83 km)(6000 feet)[1]. Prior to European emigration, the area was inhabited by Native Americans who built settlements within the canyon and its many caves. The Pueblo people considered the Grand Canyon ("Ongtupqa" in Hopi language) a holy site and made pilgrimages to it.[citation needed] The first European known to have viewed the Grand Canyon was García López de Cárdenas from Spain, who arrived in 1540.[2] In 1869, Major John Wesley Powell, a one-armed Civil War veteran with a thirst for science and adventure, made the first recorded journey through the canyon on the Colorado River. Powell referred to the sedimentary rock units exposed in the canyon as "leaves in a great story book".

What a GORGE!

There are many other shots of just awesome clouds.

I have traveled by plane since I was 9 years old. To this day, I still find looking out the plane window as exhilarating as it was for me at 9.