My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor

We listened to this as we travelled and loved it! As someone who also lost my father as a child and had many of the same kinds of experiences as she did, I could relate. I did not grow up poor in a city - I grew up poor in the country, but it was remarkable how our experiences were similar. 

Of course, she had much larger ambitions than I ever did and is an incredible intellect! How she has dealt with her illness and triumphed is inspiring. I felt like I was listening to the story of a kindred spirit. Her approach to learning new skills even through doubt that she would succeed is an approach that speaks to me. Each time she succeeded I cheered her. 

An excellent read!

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

A friend told me I needed to read this book, so I did and found that I liked it quite a bit.
It generally got Seattle right - I lived there 9 years and can relate. My friend says Bernadette is like her and she may be correct! Bernadette is a genius - so is my friend, although she won't admit it. And Bernadette tells things like they are! She is definitely a character worth getting to know.

Semple writes the story in a unique way - it is written as emails, letters, FBI documents, legal documents, a psychiatrist's evaluation and more.

Bernadette's daughter Bee, is the heart of the book, as she is what is best about children raised in a place like Seattle! The book made me laugh out loud and feel sad at the same time as I watched Bernadette and Bee and the pain of their relationships with the people around them.

Near the end of the book Bernadette writes the following to Bee about Seattle weather:

"All those ninnies have it wrong. The best thing about Seattle is the weather. The world over, people have ocean views. But across our ocean is Bainbridge Island, an evergreen curb, and over it the exploding, craggy, snow-scraped Olympics. I guess what I am saying: I miss it, the mountains and the water."

I agree. I miss it too, but this book gives some of Seattle back to me.

Sorry though, one quibble. I am a retired law librarian and I get a bit irritated with authors who get the legal parts wrong. Semple quotes the correct Revised Code of Washington, but a police report is headed,

STATE OF WASHINGTON
CIRCUIT COURT
KING COUNTY

King County has a District Court and a Superior Court - no Circuit Court!!
Despite this quibble, this is a funny family story well worth reading, even if you have never had the pleasure of living in the Pacific Northwest.

Remembering the Past

Yesterday we passed by Brunswick, Georgia as we drove to Orlando. Mike did some of his early Naval Air training at a small base there. We had some friends who were also training there at the same time. One of them was a St. Simon's Island native, Dave Everett. He and his wife were both from the area.

Dave went on to fly F-4s while Mike went to fly the A-3. A little later we heard that he had been shot down over Vietnam and was taken prisoner. He came home in 1973. We were thinking of him as we got near Brunswick.

We stopped at the rest area there and took a walk. Up ahead we saw a marker and went to take a look. Imagine our surprise as we read the marker that commemorated our Armed Forces members who defend us dedicated to David Everett of the US Navy, a returned POW. I am including both a link to a short bio of Dave and a photo of the marker. This is already a very interesting trip and bringing back memories is just part of it.

http://www.veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=1823

To Orlando

We drove from Charleston to Orlando and stopped at Dan and Yvonne's new home. They live in a lovely place that is more like a resort. The house has a lanai that is totally screened and contains a great pool! In addition, they have a one level house with lots of space, the perfect place to retire! Yvonne made us a great dinner and a fantastic breakfast this morning! I think I am getting spoiled. We are heading from their place down to Key West and will return to visit longer with them next week.

I keep seeing beautiful flowers and plants with which I am unfamiliar, so I guess I need to have a good plant book with me. The Internet gives me too many answers and I can't decide which is correct. Today I saw a tree with yellow flowers. One site said it was a type of tulip tree and another said it was an African trumpet tree. I don't know which is correct, if either. Here is a photo of the tree.

First Stop - Then Second

Stopped at our friends Dick and Maggi's place near Battlesboro. Maggi made a great dinner and then breakfast this morning. She is a talented scrap book creative team designer. Her page designs go way beyond the usual. She is a true artist! Check out her blog at: http://scraptravelbark.blogspot.com.au/?m=1
Dick is one of Mike's engineering buddies. They think so much alike it is scary. Dick gave us lots of tips to use in our travels. And we got to play with their lovable poodles while we visited.
Then on to Joint Base Charleston Fam Camp. We could only get overflow. But it had electricity and water so it is totally adequate.
We will head into Charleston in the morning and then on to Florida. This traveling works pretty well so far.

On Our Way - First Trip

We have spent the last week preparing and stocking the touring coach with the necessary supplies. We don't know if we have everything we will need, but as our daughter told us, there are these things called stores on our route. We are headed to Key West, stopping along the way to visit friends.

The day is chilly and gray but our spirits are high. Retirement is now two plus weeks old and definitely something I like. I think Mike does too.

I will post from time to time on the road. I might even find some interesting things along the way. We stopped for breakfast this morning and met a waiter who was even older than we are. He is working until he and his wife can sell their house for at least what it is worth. That made me appreciate the planning and preparation Mike has done so that we can follow our dreams.

Tools of my Trade

I took a photo of my tools of the trade, past, present and future. The past - USCCAN and all things legal. The present, my iPad, my ereader and my new iPhone. The future, a copy of "Roadfood" for our travels, a good book to read in paper and the electronic devices that will keep me in reading material on the road and in touch with my friends and family.

A New Beginning for an Old Librarian

Retiring on February 28th, going to travel, so I was told I need to blog about my travels. My spouse Mike and I are starting with a trip to Florida in mid-March. We will see how the travelling goes in a rather compact, but luxurious Mercedes Interstate by Airstream. Here is a photo of the two of us with the touring coach.