It's hard to believe it's already Friday. In just two more days vacation will be done and we'll be flying back to sunny Florida. This has definitely been a busy and enjoyable trip. Last Saturday our hotel in Grand Marais was on the shores of Lake Superior. Even though it seriously cooled down that night, we still slept with the windows open and it was wonderful to fall asleep to the sounds of the water lapping at the shore. Our return to the Twin Cities on Monday was the start of a very hectic and happy week.
I've gotten to enjoy all the foods I haven't had in almost four years. The good stuff that Florida doesn't have, Tasty Pizza, Bruegger's, LeAnn Chin, Totino's. Today is real chow mein. Yummm! I've also gotten to see several good friends and even new friends. I met Kirsty's fiancee and they are a very good fit together. I'm very happy for her and very happy she found such a wonderful person to compliment her life. I got to re-connect with an old friend and met her new significant other. It was almost like being at dinner with two John's as he and Dave have a very similar sense of humor. Dinner with the Foxes was a wonderful family affair. I even got to meet their baby (okay, she's almost 2!) granddaughter, Anna. She is a very cute, energetic little girl who has her adults all wrapped around her little finger. She's going to keep her daddy hopping when she gets older. But right now, she has her daddy bopping, to Veggie Tales that is :-)
Lots of shopping has been had. After all, there's no sales tax on clothes here, and I do love the clearance racks. Plus I got to get some cheese and Polish sausage. Yummy! Tonight is the start of the Fridley Reunion events, starting with tailgating for the homecoming game. It'll be nice to see some of my former teachers there. Tomorrow after the Apple Orchard we're going to the actual reunion at Grandma's in Dinky Town. It should be an interesting and good time. Okay, we're outta here for now. We need to get ready so that we can head out for lunch soon. Catch ya'll later!
Friday, September 28, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Greetings from Minnesota
Hey everyone! Greetings from Minnesota! John and I flew up here at the crack of dawn on Saturday and we're in the middle of a wonderful vacation. No, I truly mean that. Ok, it didn't start out all that great. Mostly because for some reason that we haven't yet figured out, neither one of us got much sleep the night before. And our flight left at 7am, which meant we had to be at the airport by 5:30 or 6. I think it's safe to say we both averaged around 2-3 hours of sleep.
We landed in Minneapolis around 11am CST and immediately headed to the Twins game. It felt like I had not spent the last 3 1/2 years attending a Twins game in a different State. It felt soooo good to be at the Dome surrounded by all the Twins fans. Granted, when I see them playing the Devil Rays, I'm still pretty much surrounded by Twins fans, but now all the music cheers and the wave (has that ever been done at a Devil Rays game?) is for the Twins as the home team. It was also my last chance to see the Twinks play at the Dome. I know, they probably won't be in their new stadium for a few years. But I don't see me making another game at the Dome anytime soon.
Right after the game John and I then headed north to Grand Marais. The drive went fairly quickly. We spend about an hour in Duluth playing around on Canal Park before continuing the drive. Traffic was pretty light which allowed us to make good time. I was disappointed that the leaves weren't as colorful as I thought they'd be. But the drive back to the Twin Cities definitely made up for it.
Sunday we drove up to Canada. John's never been to Minnesota or Canada and he wanted to go. The clerk at our hotel in Grand Marais suggested driving to a waterfall (for the life of me I can't remember the name, but it started with a K). So we planned on doing so. However, at the end of 130 in Canada (highway?), we had a T intersection and no further directions. We ended up in Thunder Bay, had lunch and then headed back to the border. A stretch stop at the Ontario visitor's center showed us that there were a set of falls right there. The visitor center is on Pigeon River. We had a nice short (about an hour round trip with rest break for pictures) hike to High Falls. We spent Sunday night in Two Harbors.
This morning after breakfast we headed up to Gooseberry Falls. After we did the tour of Glensheen Mansion in Duluth before heading back to the Twin Cities. The fall colors were amazing on the drive back. It partially makes me wonder why I ever decided to move to Florida. The trip North was relatively unchanged. It felt like I had never left. At times it also felt like I was back in high school. And although I've greatly enjoyed the trip north, I know in a very short time it's going to be beyond freezing and I will be nice and warm in sunny Florida.
I've uploaded pictures to my Photobucket account. I tried to get them semi in order. It didn't quite work out the way I planned. The titles all have a D#. The D stands for Day with D1 being Saturday Sept 22. Etc. The number after the decimal indicates the general order of the photos. For example, D2.o are the initial pictures of Sunday morning in Grand Marais. D2.1 would be the photos on the way to Canada, etc.
More pictures to follow as the week progresses. It's going to be a full, enjoyable week. I'll be visiting with old friends and the week will end with my ten year high school reunion. Wow! Where has the time gone!
We landed in Minneapolis around 11am CST and immediately headed to the Twins game. It felt like I had not spent the last 3 1/2 years attending a Twins game in a different State. It felt soooo good to be at the Dome surrounded by all the Twins fans. Granted, when I see them playing the Devil Rays, I'm still pretty much surrounded by Twins fans, but now all the music cheers and the wave (has that ever been done at a Devil Rays game?) is for the Twins as the home team. It was also my last chance to see the Twinks play at the Dome. I know, they probably won't be in their new stadium for a few years. But I don't see me making another game at the Dome anytime soon.
Right after the game John and I then headed north to Grand Marais. The drive went fairly quickly. We spend about an hour in Duluth playing around on Canal Park before continuing the drive. Traffic was pretty light which allowed us to make good time. I was disappointed that the leaves weren't as colorful as I thought they'd be. But the drive back to the Twin Cities definitely made up for it.
Sunday we drove up to Canada. John's never been to Minnesota or Canada and he wanted to go. The clerk at our hotel in Grand Marais suggested driving to a waterfall (for the life of me I can't remember the name, but it started with a K). So we planned on doing so. However, at the end of 130 in Canada (highway?), we had a T intersection and no further directions. We ended up in Thunder Bay, had lunch and then headed back to the border. A stretch stop at the Ontario visitor's center showed us that there were a set of falls right there. The visitor center is on Pigeon River. We had a nice short (about an hour round trip with rest break for pictures) hike to High Falls. We spent Sunday night in Two Harbors.
This morning after breakfast we headed up to Gooseberry Falls. After we did the tour of Glensheen Mansion in Duluth before heading back to the Twin Cities. The fall colors were amazing on the drive back. It partially makes me wonder why I ever decided to move to Florida. The trip North was relatively unchanged. It felt like I had never left. At times it also felt like I was back in high school. And although I've greatly enjoyed the trip north, I know in a very short time it's going to be beyond freezing and I will be nice and warm in sunny Florida.
I've uploaded pictures to my Photobucket account. I tried to get them semi in order. It didn't quite work out the way I planned. The titles all have a D#. The D stands for Day with D1 being Saturday Sept 22. Etc. The number after the decimal indicates the general order of the photos. For example, D2.o are the initial pictures of Sunday morning in Grand Marais. D2.1 would be the photos on the way to Canada, etc.
More pictures to follow as the week progresses. It's going to be a full, enjoyable week. I'll be visiting with old friends and the week will end with my ten year high school reunion. Wow! Where has the time gone!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
"You had some of the best times You'll never remember with me..."
"Alcohol" If you've ever heard Brad Paisley, you've probably heard this song. And now I have it running through your head. He he he. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so mean. And that's really not the purpose of my writing this tonight. I'm writing to share with you something enjoyable, if you like wine that is.
The first is a Riesling by Juliustrum. It's a Riesling Spatlese (insert two dots above the a) lieblich from Rheinhessen Germany. This was a very crisp tasting, semi-sweet wine. Very good. It was bottled and shipped by Winzergenossenschaft Westhofen. For those in Florida, John and I pretty sure we bought this at Sweet Bay since we didn't see it at Publix. Of course, it's been hanging around here for a few months, so I don't really remember.
The second I want to share is Florida Orange Groves and Winery. While in Key West last October we went into this store because Mom wanted some Key Lime pie. We didn't find the pie, but found some incredible wines based off fruits other than grapes. They have peach, pineapple, watermelon, a sangria among many many others. On our trip John and I bought the Peach and Hurricane Category 5 (the sangria). After trying the peach, I looked at the label hoping to find contact information so I could have some shipped in the future if I wanted. Imagine my surprise and delight when I found out the wine is made a few cities over from me! So I have made it my mission to share this wonderful wine since it truly is delightful. If you decide to try some, enjoy!
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
No longer a Blogging Virgin
Welcome to Through the Priszm. I've never done the blogging thing before. I never really felt like I had much to share that people would be interested in, other than friends and family of course. I decided to start one to share the different things that John and I see.
Let me do a short, sweet introduction. My name is Val, although many also know me as Priszm. John is my very fabulous, wonderful boyfriend. We live in the land of perpetual summer. Well, okay, in reality it's about ten and a half months of summer and occasional "cold." Otherwise known as Florida. Don't be fooled though, Florida does get cold. It's a different feel than that of Minnesota, where I grew up. But I digress.
As there is a distinct lack of sub-zero temperatures and snow, John and I have been increasing our outdoor activities. This usually takes place in the form of bike riding and lately we've started the Couch to 5K training program. While outside we've had the pleasure to slow down and enjoy nature, enjoy and exclaim over the wonders that are found. I've decided I'm going to try and remember to bring my camera with to capture the sights that we see and share with you, so you will be looking Through the Priszm with me!
Let me do a short, sweet introduction. My name is Val, although many also know me as Priszm. John is my very fabulous, wonderful boyfriend. We live in the land of perpetual summer. Well, okay, in reality it's about ten and a half months of summer and occasional "cold." Otherwise known as Florida. Don't be fooled though, Florida does get cold. It's a different feel than that of Minnesota, where I grew up. But I digress.
As there is a distinct lack of sub-zero temperatures and snow, John and I have been increasing our outdoor activities. This usually takes place in the form of bike riding and lately we've started the Couch to 5K training program. While outside we've had the pleasure to slow down and enjoy nature, enjoy and exclaim over the wonders that are found. I've decided I'm going to try and remember to bring my camera with to capture the sights that we see and share with you, so you will be looking Through the Priszm with me!
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