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  • Evergreen Cemetery, a Walk With Our Past
    On a lazy Saturday, with nothing to do and nowhere to be, we decided to take a trip to Evergreen Cemetery – the oldest nondenominational cemetery in Los Angeles (established in 1877)…and so much more. The cemetery is huge, 300,000 graves in 67 acres. It … Read more
  • A Day at the Devil’s Punchbowl
    I remember visiting "the Punchbowl" (The Devil's Punchbowl) in the Antelope Valley when I was kid. On a lazy Sunday we headed out for a visit and a hike (plan on spending 2-3 hours exploring and hiking).Neither William or Charlotte could comprehend the nature of … Read more
  • Where are the Condors?
    Always wanting adventure, this time we decided to go see the California Condors. Logically we headed to Los Padres National Forest and the Sespe Wilderness Area; the actual sanctuary is closed to the public, but the wilderness area is open for hiking. We entered Los Padres from Ojai and … Read more
  • Napa – Wine and Fun
    For my 40th Birthday, Christine treated me to a spectacular weekend in Napa Valley during harvest season -a perfect confluence of wine and history.We stayed at the Wine Country Inn and Cottages in St. Helena. Specifically we stayed in a cottage with a balcony that … Read more
  • Stuck in LA Traffic
    In the suffocation of Los Angeles traffic, in the countless hours lost commuting to and from, as we move along at a snail space, I started looking out the window. Looking at what Los Angeles has become in the 30+ years I’ve lived here. As … Read more
  • A Day In the Mojave Desert “Geologyzing”
    Living in Los Angeles one can quickly forget the natural beauty that exists just outside of our city. Just “north” there are landscapes, formations, and a geologic historical record of California. One can say, figuratively and literally, that the state is molded by pressures and … Read more
  • Mammoth (Nothing More, Nothing Less)
    Mammoth Lakes is not terribly far from Los Angeles (4 hour drive), but it feels worlds away. My folks joined us from Texas on this vacation; it was them that dragged us here for the first time (probably whining as we wondered why we could … Read more
  • …And Up North We Go!!!
    We finally scratched the itch and headed north to find more historical markers (…and enjoy some lovely scenery, picturesque sites, and great weather). Our intention was to view sites in Madera, Mariposa, and Toulounme counties…we ended up also in Calaveras and San Joaquin counties. In … Read more
  • Santa Clara and San Mateo: Silicon Valley and Nature Preserves
    It was once said that “the coldest winter ever spent was a summer in San Francisco” (my fact-checker let me know Mark Twain did not say this). With that very hope in mind, we decided to escape the heat this weekend and hit San Mateo … Read more
  • Death Valley (with AC)
    We spent four days meandering into and through Death Valley and it was a trip of lows and highs. Some of the lows: 68 degrees (Winterose at the Charcoal Kilns), 282 feet below sea level (Badwater), a flat tire coming down from Picacho Mines in … Read more
  • A Windy Week and Many Streets
    I spent a week in Chicago for work and in between meetings and conferences I had a chance to take in the sights –and there were a lot! Those sights are massive in dimension –be it Lake Michigan or any of the many (many) skyscrapers. I … Read more
  • Find a Desert and Get Lost
    Over the long president's day weekend we found ourselves in Anza –a place that captivated our imaginations the first time we visited. We stayed at La Casa del Zoro which was the best decision we could have made. It is centrally located, has plenty of restaurants, and … Read more
  • Boston in 2 days: all you can eat, all you can walk…
    Ended up in Boston on a business trip and had a few days to see the town. What I did not realize was how close together and "walk-able" everything is. In one day I managed to see all that I had initially put on my … Read more