Venture to Las Vegas...

When words defy description all you are left with is the word...WOW!!!


Cirque du Soleil is all of that and much, much more. This was the perfect way to celebrate our 7th Wedding Anniversary... great theatrics, music, innovation, imagination, seats, and performances, all of which took our breath away!


We don't drink other than to share a beer or a glass of wine, also we don't do the gambling thing(too much cigarette smoke and hard earned money wasted)- so our trip included a conference of some of my favorite authors, looking through various casino's, people watching, and enjoying our anniversary with a Gondola Ride in the Venetian, in addition to some of the landmark events, like the Belaggio water symphony and the volcanic eruption at The Mirage.


Great trip...and we are still saying, "WOW!"

Videographers Nightmare...

Pictured below is Uptown Sedona, Arizona taken May 7th, 2007













Sunday, May 6th, Bob and I videotaped a backyard Hawaiian theme wedding in Tempe, Arizona.

I should bring you up to speed how we ended up near Phoenix Arizona, producing a Wedding video.

Bob had signed on to one of those websites that reconnect former classmates. He had a couple of buddies that are twin brothers he befriended back in school, it had been 40+ years since they had seen each other, however, courtesy of the website they resumed contact and it resulted in one of the brothers (Doug) touching base with Bob to videotape his wedding.

Bob was as geared up as I can recall ever seeing him; excited to see a couple of old school chums and a gentleman who resides in Paradise Valley not far from Phoenix that he served in the military with. Bob said it reminded him of a class and family reunion all in one.

We arrived Saturday, the 5th early evening, Bob called Doug and advised that we just got into town. We then hopped back into the car to get the lay of the land during their rehearsal in their backyard so we would know how to set up the camera(s) for the actual wedding. So,off we went to Doug & Michele's home. The reunion between Bob with Doug and his twin Mike never missed a beat you would have never guessed 40+ years had elapsed since they last saw one another.

For the Wedding the weather was cooperative at a beautiful 85 degrees so the lovely bride and groom didn't melt in the Arizona sun, since the ceremony was held at 2:00PM. The atmosphere was fun, festive, and joyful as we met and interviewed many interesting and gregarious guests.

Monday the 7th we left and headed toward Paradise Valley to have a reunion with Bob's former military bosses, bosses, boss...a Major...named Steve F.; what is humorous to note, Bob had been invited to Steve's birthday party (back in the day), while stationed in Germany and was clueless as to who he was and what position he held, subsequently they just hit it off and became friends. They seem to visit once every 15 years or so...so this was a real treat.

Steve and his wife Nina couldn't have made us feel more like royalty! Nina made us a fabulous lunch, the conversation was sparkling, and their hospitality made us feel right at home. Steve has this jovial kindness that punctuates his conversations and Nina is the kind of woman that is wonderfully refreshing open, honest, creative, and fun.

We left their home and headed to Sedona, Arizona to meet with Mike (one of the twins) and his fiance Tatiana. We arrived in Sedona around 4:45PM and were able to take the photo shown above as we drove into town.

We stayed at a Best Western and the room was extremely nice with a sitting area, as well as an outdoor balcony over looking the most notable rock formations featured in many of the travel guides, we felt so fortunate to have this spectacular view, be within walking distance of the main marketplace of shops & activities, and have a room that didn't cost us an arm and a leg.

Mike & Tatiana came over to our room, they had absconded some of the fresh fruit from the wedding platters and didn't know if we imbibed or not so they brought over some adult beverages. I had sliced some cheese(s) and made a cheese & cracker platter with fruit cups. I know I seemed like a party pooper because I don't drink, so I had them make me a rum and coke and took a couple of sips to be sociable.

We had a energetic gab fest, like nobodies business! Poor Tatiana was showing signs of residual Jet lag since they reside in the East coast, and here it was 10:30 PM our time... her squinty eyes were desperately trying to stay open when you could tell all she wanted was some much needed rest.

The next couple of days included more socializing and outings with Mike and Tatiana. Mike is every bit as social, talkative, and outgoing as Bob and Tatiana has many intriguing stories, experiences, and observations making it highly enjoyable to be around such a captivating couple. They were a lot of fun and it was nice to have another gal around to hang around with.

Here is where my grace (or lack thereof) came into play; because Bob wants to document every nano second of every experience with his digital camera I was to set up a shot and photograph Mike and he so he would have a photo for posterity...I can understand that...except yours truly is a fumble fingers and I dropped the camera breaking it. This is a videographers nightmare, although it wasn't his videocamera, it is the next best thing. This prevented us from getting the scenic shots, in addition to, some shots of us together as Bob would have liked. (Personally...I was relieved a little bit since I am not keen on getting my picture taken anyway.)

Do you think this would stand in the way of a man and his art??? Not on your tin type!!! Bob acquired Tatiana's digital camera and took more pictures of Mike and she than they said they had ever had done before!

UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! Bob had a mistress this trip, ah yes, you heard me correctly...the digital and videocamera's I just couldn't compete. He was documenting everyone's real moments of love and connection and was hampering his own by not experiencing the circumstances at hand unless it was through the lens of a camera. I had a very nice time but it was a bit different from our initial trip 12 years ago, that is the way life is...time has a way of changing things...the town was busier and more touristy, they had barkers who would yell at you to come and see what time share offers they wanted to present to you, and Bob just couldn't put down the dad-gum-camera's.

Lastly, I came to cherish the uninterrupted time in our car as we would chat, laugh, and share during the long journey home...and realized that our trip was made magical by the many friendships, the scenery, and the camaraderie of strangers and new found pals.