October 11 - I have a friend who is a food blogger and receives all sorts of freebies to try. He got a batch of vegan chocolate that he needed feedback on. My friend Suzy and I were happy to oblige!
October 26 - This may be most incredible sunrise I have ever captured. It happened on a day I had a big job interview, and I thought it was a good omen. Unfortunately, I didn't get the job.
October 31 - Still depressed from not getting the job, I drove to Philadelphia for some soul searching. I attended the temple there and ate at a cool vegan restaurant. It was a great trip. I came back refreshed and filled with answers and direction.
November 6 - Riding the escalator at the mall, I found $20!!!! The Universe is smiling at me! (And frowning on someone else, unfortunately...)
November 15 - Headed to Monterey, California, for a three-day 50th birthday bash for my friend Regis, who was one of my best friends from college. When I first arrived, he drove me and another friend of his along the coastline.
November 16 - I spent most of the day studying in my hotel room (I had decided in Philadelphia that I would become a process improvement professional and had just started a class toward my certification), but took a lunch break and walked down to the beach.
I wasn't planning on returning to the beach, but I discovered that I had accidentally dropped my phone adapter, which I would need for the plane ride back. So I walked back down in the evening, catching the beginnings of the sunset. I never did find my adapter and had to purchase another one before I left.
That night, Regis hosted a tapas night at a local hotel. I got to meet friends of his from all aspects of his life. It was really fun.
November 17 - With no formal activities planned until 1pm, some of Regis' friends from Chicago and I decided to do a little hiking along the bay. Our first stop was Point Pinos Lighthouse, which is the oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the West Coast.
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| It still has the original 1855 lens. |
Along the way, we came across a sea lion, lying on the rocks just spitting distance away! We thought it was dead, but it wasn't.
The first planned activity of the day was a whale watching trip. Regis had been out several times and had never seen any, but they came out for his birthday! We saw hundreds of humpback and a couple of grey whales, including a mama and baby. No pictures of the whales--they look just the same as you would see anywhere on the internet. Ha ha!
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| It was a beautiful day to head out on the water! |
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| My former college roommate, Sylvia. |
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| Me and the birthday boy! |
That evening, Regis hosted a catered dinner at another local hotel, which included a slide show of his life. He even performed a musical number for everyone. It was a great time.
November 18 - The final day of the 3-day birthday bash was a catered brunch at Regis' home in Carmel. Afterwards, some of us went to the mall to get me a new phone adapter, then headed to the beach to catch the last sunset of the trip. Unfortunately, we forgot we were on a peninsula, and the sun set on the other side of us!!! Oh well. No good pictures, but it makes for a good story. After the beach, we brought Chipotle back to the house and had a fun time with the few remaining guests. Regis and I sang a duet we had performed for a talent show in college. It was a nice way to cap off the weekend.
November 22 - Thanksgiving! This year, I got to fulfill a many years long dream of eating with the Vegetarian Society of DC. I had already purchased my ticket when Dan said he was planning on going out of town and asked if I could take John for the holiday. John did not want to go with me, so he spent Thanksgiving with some friends from church. I was grateful that they took him in.
November 23 - The next day, John and I headed on a road trip to upstate New York so he could get some driving hours in.
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| Heading on the highway, looking for adventure... |
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| Doctor Who-themed restaurant, The Pandorica. The reason we came up here! |
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| The decorations were far better than the food. |
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| Our AirBnB hosts were game hunters. This vegetarian was a little uncomfortable! |
Our final stop on the Mother-Son tour was to see Ralph Breaks the Internet. It was a GREAT movie--and not just for kids!
And that's the end of Part 4. Only one part left. Almost finished with 2018!
