Lauritzen Gardens & Kenefick Park

What happened was this. We had Bonnie Raitt tickets for San Diego and planned to spend a few days soaking up good tunes and Vitamin D, while partaking of the perfecto teas at The Tea Pavilion in Balboa Park. Then, Turkish Airlines went crazy let’s-break-into-the-U.S.-market fire sale, offered ridiculous roundtrip prices, and I was given…

Here we are with this title that sounds so stereotypical, but, with Fringe and the Military Tattoo taking place while we were in Edinburgh, was actually quite literal. There were bagpipes. Many. Also hills. Those too were most literal. And some serious ass-busters. Anyway Edinburgh… my haggis, what can I say? A smallish sort of city with organic restaurants and an organic grocery…

So, before I jetted back across country to resume my humdrum life, I was in NYC for three days following the NYC excursion. And here’s how that went. First, we were booked at one hotel for the entire three days, but when we got there, the chic at the desk wouldn’t let us check in…

Eastern Europe is a land of hard sells. In my experience. Wouldn’t want to be accused of trying to stereotype an entire region. But, seriously, it is. In Athens, this was relegated mainly to restaurants, though there was one particularly humorous exchange with a cab driver who was convinced he knew where I wanted to…

Just before going to sleep last night, at about one a.m. Central Time, it occurred to me it was my last full day in the U.S. for at least seven and a half months. That means no Whole Foods with seed bread, or car that waits in the driveway for whenever I decide to use it,…