Everybody Knows This is Nowhere

Neon sign Fremont East
Originally uploaded by zenhikers

November. Friends, family, and food. A good month, and lots to be thankful for, despite the melancholy that comes with confronting another year's passing in Las Vegas.

Early in the month, I did something completely out of character and had a girl's weekend in Vegas with some old friends from high school. This actually involved things like walking up and down the Strip, eating at celebrity chef restaurants, nickel slots, shopping,and one Michael Jackson dance party (um, yeah I was responsible for that last one.) It was a fabulous time and I just want to note here that I am capable of "being fun", wearing makeup AND a dress simultaneously, and doing "girly stuff". Yeah, I know you doubted me, but that's cool.

Later in the month, we had the in-laws in town and got to spend some quality time catching up. This weekend was full of eating yummy food (complete with Italian accordion players), walking the dog, talk about real estate, love at Love, and a few winning hands of video poker on Fremont Street. It is fun to see the city through the eyes of a tourist and putting together an agenda for the weekend was really fun. I'll definitely be back to Firefly at the Plaza, Twin Creeks at the Silverton, and just for shock value the Hash House (kill the DJ, though!!)

Most recently was the highly tradition-wrought holiday of Thanksgiving. After seventeen heated conversations about methodology and best practices for brining a turkey - we finally got our bird prepped, the fridge packed with groceries and beer, and the iPod queued up with some good cooking music (somehow this became a classic rock-themed meal). My sister and her husband arrived on Thursday and we kept them distracted with learning how to play cribbage as we cooked and baked. I also surprised my sister with a toast to her recent academic accomplishments and I think she was extremely happy to have surpassed a major landmark in her career. I am very proud! Because no family visit is complete without a little sibling rivalry we also ended up playing (what is now a tradition, I suppose) a poker tournament that naturally I ended up losing all my money in (darn lucky river card!). The rest of the weekend involved more football than I ever need in my life, but I did learn about the Florida Gator chomp (?) and some shot called Sex with an Alligator. I'm positive this will come in handy! During an escape from the Mandalay Bay sportsbook, my sister and I snuck away to see the Bodies exhibit which has forever changed me. I mean you are really missing out in life if you cannot immediately conjure a mental image of the complete human skin lying in a glass box. Now, this is burned eternally into my memory. Yeah, totally.

So, now it's officially holiday season. I'm very happy to have had such fun in November and I sincerely thank everyone for coming and spending some time with us in Vegas. But, I have to say a mellow Christmas doesn't sound half bad. So there's the update, just in case you were "wondering what it's like down here". Hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving. Cheers!

Tribute to a Great Griller!

Ron at the Tiki Table
Originally uploaded by zenhikers

I just want to say to congratulations to my father-in-law, Ron who was recently recognized by the Milwaukee Journal -Sentinel for his entry in the Milwaukee Grills competition. Ron and his wife Bonnie have hosted us numerous times for a grillout at their lovely home in South Milwaukee and it makes me homesick for Wisconsin just to think of the good times.

Ron's recipes are always good. So good that he has compiled a family cookbook to share with us all and to preserve some of the family recipes handed down over the years. In the Wieselman family Ron is responsible for the cooking and Bonnie handles the baking, so the two are a perfect pair constantly tempting our tastebuds! The featured recipe Ron was honored for is his Chuck on the Grill, so check it out and throw something you like on the barbie. There is no better way to relax and enjoy some quality time with good people. My husband has the Wieselman genes for talented grilling and I plan to challenge him to replicate this recipe this weekend. The thing is...you gotta put that extra ingredient that makes the difference. No, it's not beer (although that always helps) --it's the pinch of love for family and friends that makes Ron and Bonnie's cooking really special. Love you guys!

The Frozen Tundra

Get your snowsuits ready!

Here's your dispatch from the winter wonderland of Southeastern Wisconsin in December...

We are here in Milwaukee and enjoying all the fun of the holidays. It is quite a different scene than the Mojave Desert, with 3-5 inches of snow expected today and more to follow. There is nothing but fluffy whiteness covering everything in sight. It's a good day for me to finish reading, The Kite Runner or for a day-long marathon catching up on last season's Lost episodes. You don't feel guilty lighting the fire and sitting back with a blanket and a cup of tea when it is snowy and blowy outside. I am going to soak it all in before we have to hit to road back to Vegas. 2 days of driving through Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and then Nevada lies ahead for us and I can only hope we find a clear window to make some miles westward. Before we go we will have burgers and custard, hit a local fish fry, and visit lots of local taverns. But, most of all it has been fun to catch up with family, relax and kick back with some board games (or poker?) and re-aquaint ourselves with the joys of the frozen tundra!

SoCal-Style Thanksgiving

I don't think I will ever get used to sunshine, warm days, beaches, and palm trees for the holidays but this year we did get the pleasure of celebrating Thanksgiving with my sister in Los Angeles. After hearing horror stories of 11 hour drives on the I-15 during holiday weekends, we decided to leave early on Wednesday and make the drive early in the morning. I drank a little too much coffee and needed a pit stop, which isn't really as easy as it sounds when you are driving through the Mojave Desert. We finally pulled over somewhere about 40 miles past Baker at a desolate-looking mini-mart. It turns out that this isnot just a clean bathroom, but some kind of official Ron Paul mini mart. There was a sign in the bathroom asking people to please buy something, so I ended up perusing the sodas, only to discover that they specialized in vintage soda. Yay for Dad's root beer. Not much else was available, so we also bought a Ron Paul marketing kit and hit the road. Some interesting reading material, including: "Why Methamphetamine Should be Legal"!

Once in LA, we navigated the maze of freeways and made it to Woodland Hills. This is a northwestern suburb that is really close to Topanga Canyon and then over the mountains, the Pacific Ocean. We drove through the canyon checking out camping at Topanga State Park and then drove south to Santa Monica on the Pacific Coast Highway. We got trapped in a crazy traffic jam and reversed to go north to Malibu. There was a fabulous park across the highway from what's got to be one of the mosst beautiful campuses in the world belonging to Pepperdine University with views of the beach. Pocky enjoyed a walk on the bluffs and we got to experience the wacky California doggie-poop bags (amazingly complex!) After Malibu, we met my sister and went out for a fabulous dinner in the canyon at Abuelita's and I got to FINALLY PLAY Wii!!!!

On Thanksgiving, we all got up early and had bagels and coffee to get us ready for the big day of cooking. We then proceeded to inventory whether or not my sister actually had enough pots, pans, and dishes to cook a turkey and numerous side dishes. It is hard to believe that three people, two cats (hi Honu and Velzy!), and a dog in a one-bedroom LA apartment were able to pull off an organized, well-timed feast, but we did! The turkey was really great and we had my Mom's oyster stuffing, my Nana's blueberry Jello salad, and Aaron's family's Eastern European cucumbers. There were two kinds of pie for desert and plenty of wine and beer. We played a friendly game of Texas Hold-em while the bird cooked and I got my first four of a kind! After dinner we drank more, and played the strangely addictive game Taboo. (Where else can you ponder which beast your relative considers to be the "yin and yang of animals"? That would be the panda.) My sister even updated her Facebook page and verified that we really are siblings.

On Friday, we had breakfast in the canyon at a great dog-friendly place and then took a trip to Muscle Beach in Venice. It was amazing. I have definitely seen some freaky people on the Lower East Side, in Vegas, and across the country- but Venice certainly has an inordinate amount of weirdos. We saw this super-tanned troll-like bodybuilder with nary a piece of clothing on jogging to the workout pen, several folks conversing with themselves, and a rich guy with a herd of dogs. Aaron got his fortune done and we invested in a few well-chosen bumper stickers as souvenirs. After picking Andy up from the house we headed to Ventura to check out their favorite break, Surfer's Point and to get my national park passport stamped at Channel Islands National Park. We couldn't leave without sampling some of the local microbrews at Anacapa Brewing Company who had an awesome nut brown ale and fabulous asiago cheese dip with beer bread that we noshed on. We even called one of our favorite uncles to spread the Thanksgiving cheer. A great night even though some us drank more than others!!

Saturday, we needed to head back to Vegas, but what is life without a little disc golf? We couldn't leave without getting out butts kicked at the Sylmar Disc Golf Course where we played 18 holes. I am still the worst driver on the planet- but I think my putting has improved. With a little exercise under our belts we left for Vegas and made it back to the I-15. We were SO glad we were driving the opposite way from LA because from Barstow to Baker (about 100 miles) it was nearly bumper-to-bumper traffic. What a mess. With a full moon rising over the desert we headed back into Nevada and into the neon of Vegas. Home from a great weekend.

Birthday Weekend in Vegas

My birthday and my sister's both fall in the month of October and since she just moved to L.A., we decided to celebrate this weekend and go out for a night in Vegas. They left after work and got in in late on Friday night after a somewhat hellish drive on the I-15. When they arrived, we cracked a couple beers, opened our presents, played dice, and ate the devil's food cake I made until about 1:30 in the morning.

We woke up on Saturday and decided to hit the road to Valley of Fire so that my sister could see some of the beautiful scenery that makes living here bearable. Aside from the usual road rage I exhibit when driving through the Spaghetti Bowl to get out of town, the drive to the park was uneventful. Aaron and Andy discussed politics the entire way, so I had to enforce a smackdown on all political topics, at least until we got out of Valley of Fire. We went to the visitor's center and drove the scenic drive, and then did a little bit of hiking, although we were limited by Pocky's bum knee and couldn't really make our guests truly suffer on anything epic-length. Next we drove down along the Lake Mead shore and into Boulder City for lunch at MIlo's and some beer. Erin set the pace by ordering two beers for herself in the first round! (She got an Pyramid Apricot and a Guinness to make her variation on a black and tan).

After returning home we relaxed a bit and then got ready to go down to the Strip. Don't ask me how we ended up at the Star Trek Experience at the Hilton...but somehow, my sister decided that it was a good idea and who am I to argue with someone on their birthday? We did the rides (which were pretty good and amusing) with live actors and lots of special effects. Then we hit the gift shop and the theme restaurant for some food and the featured cocktails. Our table started with a Borg Sphere, which included 10 oz. of liquor and came steaming in a massive fishbowl. We were all pretty loopy by the time we left. I even got harassed by one of the alien guys (Aaron says in was a Ferengi, but whatever)...

The city blocks in Vegas are very long and we ended up walking in a huge circle in a dust cloud looking for a place to gamble. One would not think it would be so hard to find such a place...but we walked through a construction site, past the closed (and soon-to-be-imploded Frontier) and past a strip mall with nothing but a very neon Denny's before we got to the Wynn. We walked around a bit, past the Maserati dealership, but once we were exhausted we went to the sports book to rest our feet and have some more cocktails. After a few drinks and a race that I really should have put some money on, since I kept predicting the winners, we went to the slots. Lady Luck smiled on Andy and he hit a nice hand on video poker, so that made everyone happy. Having accomplished our main objectives, we went home and played some Texas hold 'em before Erin made us go to bed.

This morning we got up and finished off the cake before heading over to the Peccole Ranch disc golf course. This gem is one of the only positive things we have found in Vegas, and makes our neighborhood somewhat more enjoyable. Little did I know, Andy is actually quite accomplished at disc golf and I ended up humiliating myself as I hit every single tree and light post on the course and kept calling the discs, "frisbees".

After a great Mexican food brunch, we said goodbye to my sister and sent them on their way. Unfortunately, they hit a major wind storm and had to drive through sand and overturned semis all along I-15 back to L.A. There is also a major fire in Malibu, near where they live, so they may not be making this commute again anytime soon. It was a great weekend and we spent a lot of time laughing ourselves silly, which I guess is basically the best part about having a sister.

What I Did on my Summer Vacation

Cables of Half Dome
Originally uploaded by zenhikers

When it is 99 degrees at 9:26 pm in Las Vegas, it is hard to believe that the summer is coming to an end. But at UNLV, the students are being oriented and the library is preparing for Fall semester.

I just returned from my vacation in Twain Harte, CA where I visited for a week with family in a big old cabin with a wonderful porch. Porches truly are the key to happiness! On this porch we played endless games of cribbage (a game of low cunning, math, and luck!), drank lovely Zinfindel and some surprisingly tasty Miller product called Chill, and talked the hours of the night away to the sounds of each others' iPods.

On Tuesday, I went to Yosemite with my husband's sister and her husband where we hiked the John Muir Trail up to Half Dome. Everyone has their personal limit and I would venture a guess that not a few hikers have discovered theirs at the Half Dome cables. What a terrifying sight to behold. The 17-mile round trip ended with a bear-sighting at the Happy Isles concession stand and a welcome bag of Doritos on the car trip home.

Family vacations are no fun without kids, and these two really made the week. I got to lie in the hammock with my imaginative niece and talk about life and later watch my nephew conquer the local half-pipe on his skateboard. Great fun and memories.

Vacations also equal eating, so here are the highlights: homemade sausage at the local diner (Sportsman's Grill), a cute casual place in Murphys called Fire Wood (burritos and wood-fired pizza), and the most wonderful Chocolate Peanut Butter pie ever from The Rock Pub.

The pictures are uploaded, the muscles are no longer sore from the hike, and we are back in the desert where sleeping with the windows open is no longer an option. If nothing else summer vacations remind us of the years past and keep us looking forward to what's around the corner.