We left Flagstaff at 5:00am Thursday. The further west we drove the lighter it was early in the morning. This was a good thing for driving but I have to admit, the desert scenery was nothing to behold. With miles and miles and miles of nothingness and with temperatures around 90 degrees at eight in the morning, the desert isn’t my favorite place!
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| Needles, CA |
We arrived in Santa Barbara a couple of hours too early to
check in so we took a walk on the breakwater. The fog was just beginning to come in and with the breeze
coming off the ocean it was a welcome relief to the heat. We sat out at the end of the breakwater
just enjoying the view and people watching. The view from the end of the breakwater across to the wharf and the mountains behind is always so calming and peaceful.
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| The breakwater and harbor |
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| View from end of breakwater towards wharf |
Festivities for Susan’s reunion began that night with dinner
and drinks for about 12 of her classmates and a few spouses. At the very beginning it was obvious
classmates were so glad to see each other and celebrate their 50th
high school reunion.
Friday we met one of Susan's sister, Jill, and her husband Tony for lunch out on the wharf. It was great seeing them and the wharf is such a beautiful place to eat.
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| Mike, Susan, Jill and Tony |
Friday
night about 60 or so met at Rusty’s Pizza for pizza night in anticipation of
the big event the following night.
Saturday started off early as I dropped Susan off at San
Marcos High School where 30-40 classmates, friends and spouses toured the old school. After the tour we
visited with friends before heading back to get ready for the festivities
that evening. Susan and the
reunion committee had to be at the Rec Center, where the dinner/dance was being
held to decorate before everyone arrived.
The reunion was a huge success with everyone being transformed back to
the 60s and high school days as they danced to the music of their era with the
Brian Faith Band (aka Ernie and the Emperors), a band from their era. Now, I have to brag a little and share
with you the gift Susan's classmates gave her. It is a picture of the Court House and all her classmates at
the reunion signed around the matting.
It was a special tribute to all the hard work she did in making sure
this milestone reunion happened.
She doesn’t want to take the credit for making it happen as she keeps
saying IT WAS A TEAM EFFORT!
The reunion culminated with a picnic Sunday where classmates were able to give their final hugs and say their final good-byes until the next reunion. I had as much fun as Susan did during the reunion weekend and was sad to see it end.
Monday we were able to visit Susan's other sister, Diane and her husband, John.
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| John, Mike, Diane and Susan |
Tuesday was a very relaxing day as we got up and got ready
to head to Camarillo to visit my sister.
The place we were staying had a little private patio where we could
sit out and eat our breakfast and have our coffee. Tuesday was no exception as we played a game or two of
cribbage and slowly started our day.
It was my niece’s birthday so my sister took everyone out to
dinner. Since our time was
limited, it was a great way to visit and catch up.
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| Mike and my sister, Patty |
Today we headed down to Costa Mesa to visit my 2nd
daughter, Trish, and her family.
We drove along the Pacific Coast Highway with some beautiful views of
the ocean. Although the ocean is beautiful and I love the beach, I can honestly say that I would never want to move back to Southern California with all the traffic and crowds.
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| Along the Pacific Coast Highway |
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| Along the Pacific Coast Highway |
I figure all the activities will surely give me lots of material for future stories.
Until next week.
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