Day 20 – Part 1 – Sunny Days Are Here Again!

Posted on October 9, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

It’s early. We don’t know what the day will bring, but the sun is shining so it can’t be bad. We had a good soaking of rain from the extreme fringe of hurricane Matthew but nothing beyond the capabilities of professional Oregonians to handle. Just a little rain. I say that not meaning to minimize the impact Matthew has had on its journey up the coast of Florida. That was pretty devastating for thousands of folks. Those where we are were fortunate. It could have been far worse.

This is the view from our window, looking almost due south. There’s a bit of a breeze but no rain in the foreseeable future. That means things are looking up for a nice few days in Virginia Beach later this week.

Our friend Nancy, in Georgia, whom I’ve never talked about, had to evacuate her house because it was in the path of Matthew. I don’t know how far she had to go to reach safety, but she is safe. Yesterday she returned home to find that it was OK. Lots of trees down in her area but none hit her house. Just wind-blown tree debris all over the place. We’re happy for that.

Also, cousin Karen from Clyo, GA had to pack up, too. She went to Atlanta but don’t have any updates yet.

The really sad news from yesterday, from a sports perspective, is that the Oregon Ducks were thoroughly dominated by the Washington Huskies 70-21. It was bound to happen eventually. Now I’ll have to shift my fickle allegiance to the winner and root for Washington to make it to the championship game. That will maintain my PAC-12 affiliation but sever my mental ties to the home state team. Second on my list is the Oregon Beavers who won yesterday against California.

Enough about college sports. Lets move on to the NFL. Cam is out with a concussion for tomorrow nights game which means our very own Derek Anderson, who is from Scappoose, will be the QB. We look forward to watching him play. His grandpa lives just around the corner from Diane’s Mom, Jean, in St. Helens. I actually had lunch with him at the St. Helens Senior Center a few weeks ago. Nice guy.

On the high school football scene, St. Helens High beat Parkrose 42-0 at the St. Helens home-coming game on Friday. The boys in appear to have a handle on how the game is played. We go to all the games when we’re home. Same with soccer, as you may have noticed from previous posts.

Everyone who cares will be happy to know that I’ve decided to quit adding sugar and cream to my coffee because my BS levels have been bouncing around a little. Not terribly high, but higher than normal. So, I’m just going cold turkey, back to the way I drank my coffee during my Navy days – black and bitter. Doing this will also lower my caffeine intake because I’ll only drink 2 cups instead of 7.

We haven’t heard from Cedric yet about how his day will go, or if I’ll be allowed to sign him out again. So, we decided that if nothing is heard by noon we’ll head off base to see what’s out there. The sun is shining bright and almost all the clouds have dissipated so exploring should be fun. If we get Cedric, we may be able to take him with us. That remains to be seen. He has duty tomorrow so that will be a free day to explore for us, too.

I’ll end this segment now since I’m not really sharing anything of significance and leave you breathless, waiting for Part 2 this evening.

Stay safe.

Day 19 – Another Day With Cedric

Posted on October 8, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Diane and I slept very well last night and extended the relaxation period to late morning. Like till 1000. Then the phone rang. I knew right away that it was Cedric because that’s what my caller ID told me. Knowing this, I answered right away to see what was up.

He said, “you can come and get me, if you want.”

“Right now?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said.

“Should I come as I am or should I put clothes on?” I asked.

“Clothes would be good, Grandpa,” he said.

Actually, we were just lounging around in our jammies, waiting to see what the day would bring. It started raining last night and has been raining all day. Sometimes very hard. We had planned to put clothes on if something came up that required us to leave the room. Since it did, we told Cedric we’d be there at noon, and got busy putting on street clothes.

The rules for today were the same as yesterday except he was allowed to stay out until 2100. We got to the barracks and I was walking to the entrance just as Cedric walked out the door. We turned around and went right back in so I could sign him out for the day.

Since it was noon we took the bottomless pit to Popeye’s Chicken that’s actually part of the gas station. Odd, maybe, but that’s the way it is. Kinda like a rest stop on the freeway where there’s a KFC on one end, and Taco Bell on the other end. Here on base it’s just Popeye’s. The other end is just a gas station. That doesn’t really matter, though, because Cedric would have eaten on the gas station side if necessary.

After lunch we made a trip to the commissary with the hope of finding a knee wrap for Diane in the medical section. On the way in I saw an older fellow wearing a USMC baseball hat and did the only natural thing there was to do. He saw it coming when I saluted him and returned it. This kind of caught Cedric off guard because he wasn’t sure whether he should salute or not. No, it was just two old guys honoring each other for service rendered.

We didn’t find anything like what was needed in the commissary so went next door to the PX to search some more. They didn’t have any wraps either, but they had some shoe inserts Diane wanted to try. And I found these young soldiers having fun with costumes.

It’s a new Army.

On the way out of the PX we met the USMC guy coming in so we rendered honors once again. It’s fun being in the military again even if it’s just for fun.

After leaving the PX we stopped by the Women’s Museum at Cedric’s request. I told him I wasn’t sure we could get in because I thought maybe, since it’s a women’s museum that only women were allowed inside. I was wrong, of course. I knew I would be. Cedric wanted a moment of his ideal woman, Athena.

The displays inside were very nicely done and told a very interesting story of women in the Army. I only took one photo inside because it’s not really something I’d find useful in my library and I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have found it interesting. This is the one I took …

Then I got Cedric just hanging out waiting for us to catch up on the outside.

The we went back to the our room to enjoy the rain and remainder of the day inside, watching a movie. Cedric has a copy of the Captain America vs. Iron Man movie. Diane had never seen it and she kinda has a crush on Captain America. So do I. He’s hot.

After the movie Diane made us a nice dinner of bake potatoes, salad, and beef brisket. It was excellent. I tried to take a selfie at the table but Cedric ruined it.

After dinner Diane broke out the mini Oreos and Cedric shared a little know story about how his Mom, our little Jennifer, would take Oreos out of the package, eat all the frosting, and put the cookies back. It’s a fond childhood memory of Cedric’s. He was happy that all the minis he got from the package had all the frosting inside.

Sharing this memory prompted him to call his Mom so he could talk to her. He put her on speaker so we could all participate. It was very nice. No other family members were present which was unfortunate, but we had a wonderful talk with Mom.

Cedric shared a karma event with us regarding the young man who agreed to be Cedric’s Liberty Buddy last Wednesday but bailed at the last minute making it necessary for us to visit at the picnic tables by the barracks. Well, today, after we arranged to pick Cedric up at noon, that same sailor wanted Cedric to be his Buddy to go off base to the credit union. Since we were on the way, Cedric declined. Oddly, the sailor was upset apparently telling Cedric he’d remember this. We all decided he probably wouldn’t since he didn’t remember the first event.

Too too, it was time to pack up and head back out into the rain. Cedric has the proper clothing for inclement weather. I love his coat but can’t afford to buy on for myself. Just as we were ready to leave Cedric’s phone rang and it was Jeran. We delayed departure for a bit so they could talk, then Cedric excused himself because we had to get him back to the barracks. He vowed to call Jeran back once he was back in his room.

That was the day. Another good one.

Day 18 – A Day With Cedric

Posted on October 8, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

I’m writing this the day “after” instead of the day “of” so please forgive me if I get things out-of-order, or, God forbid, forget something. I might even spell something wrong. It could happen because I’m going to write in present tense, pretending it’s yesterday

The first order of business was to see about connecting with Cedric in person. So far we’ve only been texting while things get sorted out about whether or not he can leave his barracks with us. Since he’s still new to the Navy, and currently stationed on an Army base, Army rules apply and they require that their newbies obtain a Battle Buddy to move beyond the bounds of their barracks. The Buddy System. Makes sense. Cedric had a Buddy lined up for last Thursday so we could see him but that Buddy backed out. When Jennifer heard about this she told Cedric, “Remember that when he wants help.”

That’s my girl!

That put Thursday out of reach so we arranged to meet him at his barracks this morning so we could hang out with him at the picnic tables on the Navy side of his barracks which is shared with the Air Force.

When we arrived there were about 10 Air Force folks, men and women, performing yard maintenance all across the front of the building, which is very large, sending grass clipping odors our direction in such a manner that Diane found it hard to breath. So, she departed for the safety of the car until they were done. Before leaving I captured them.

Cedric and I, who are not similarly affected by grass odors in such a manner, sat at a wobbly picnic table talking about his new life.

He said he actually liked Boot Camp better because it was a mindless (my word) existence that didn’t require decisions, just obedience. With the shift to Fort Lee he retained the obedience requirement, obtained more freedom, and was tasked with the added aspect of adopting unfamiliar Army regulations into his behavior pattern. I can understand his confusion.

We talked for about an hour during which time I learned a bit about how his daily life goes. He’s only been on the base for a week so really hasn’t had much time to assimilate. His school started on Monday and they already have them playing with knives, an unanticipated treat. And it wasn’t just a butter knife, but a really sharp one.

I learned that FC1 Clark is in charge of the Navy aspect of the barracks today. FC stands for Fire Control meaning his job is mainly on ships at sea dealing with guns and missiles. Being here, in this job, is a way for the Navy to give him a break from sea duty. Cedric calls him their baby sitter, which it is in a way. He approves all the standard requests for liberty so he’s an important person this day in the daily lives of the sailors in the barracks.

By now the lawn mowing had been terminated because lunch was looming on everyone’s radar. Food was becoming more and more important. Even our stomachs were beginning to sense the need for sustenance in order to make it through the afternoon to supper. So, Diane volunteered to make a run to Subway and bring it back for us to eat.

About that time FC1 Clark left the building on his way to lunch. He wasn’t gone long, and Diane was preparing to leave on her mission to obtain a sandwich when he returned. I stood by Diane, wishing her well on her quest as FC1 Clark exited his vehicle.

I timed my return to Cedric so it intersected with Petty Officer Clark’s trajectory so that I could thank him for his service, and to introduce myself. As I expected, he was a very congenial young man who was willing to explain the rules for Liberty Buddies for me. We just talked Navy, something I think he misses.

At this juncture I must profess that not once did I reveal my Navy rank in an attempt to coerce a desired answer to an unasked, but simply inferred request. That was, of course, was there any reason why I couldn’t be Cedric’s Liberty Buddy since we were not going to leave the base.We just wanted to take advantage of an unexpected opportunity to visit with Cedric.

He tipped his head to the side a little, pondering the situation, then he asked, “what’s his last name?”

“Walters,” I told him.

He turned, aiming his voice at the picnic table where Cedric sat and said, “Walters!’

Being attuned to the sound and tone of FC1 Clark’s voice Cedric jumped to attention and quickly assumed a familiar position in front him. I learned later that Cedric was seriously afraid that I’d said something to get him into trouble. Then FC1 Clark said, “go get that liberty request you filled out and bring it to the office.” Then he turned to look at me and said, “bring your Grandpa, too.”

Stunned, Cedric departed on his mission and returned shortly to escort me into the building.

The entrance is set up to mimic boarding and leaving a ship and proper decorum is maintained throughout the process – salute the flag, turn and salute the Petty Office Of the Watch (POOW) request permission to come aboard, permission granted, then proceed into the building. Very proper stuff.

At the office, Cedric stood to the side of the door, then knocked, asking permission to enter. I screwed that one up by just marching ahead of him into the office. Seeing my mistake, I backed out and let him go first. At the desk I signed him out and away we went to Pizza Hut.

Yes, we opted for Pizza Hut instead of Subway. It was a good choice. Lunch was really good. Turns out the Pizza Hut on base is typically populated by Army so we two sailors were pretty much a minority. It was fun to mingle with them and they were all very polite and respectful.

From there Cedric opted to just hang out in our hotel room for the afternoon. The deal about being his Liberty Buddy was that I had to sign him back in prior to 2000. So, we made a pact to be back before 1930. During that time, Cedric did this …

and this

Just hung out and watched a movie, ate popcorn, and visited.

Later we stopped by Subway to get Cedric a sandwich, then we stopped by his school on the way back to sign him in. I call it the Knowledge Distribution Center, or KDC since were in the land of acronyms once again.

That ended the day.

It was a good one.

Day 17 – Fort Lee Lodge & Other Stuff

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Not a lot to write about today because we didn’t do much. Still, I’ll see how far I can stretch this with nothing to say.

We got up earlier than normal, before 9 am, so I took a trip to the main floor for a look at the area where they serve a continental breakfast for folks staying at the Lodge. I think I already mentioned that this place is like a very large Holiday Inn and is, in fact, affiliated with Holiday Inn. If you’ve stayed at one of those you will know that they have a very nice breakfast room. Well, think about that for a second, then expand the room to about 100 x 100 and you’ll get a sense of what this one is like. Seriously, it’s that big. OK, maybe it’s only 100 x 75. Still big.

To the left of the door there is a curving self-serve area with boiled eggs, waffles, french toast, yogurt, milk machines, oatmeal, grits, fruit, toasters, and what looks like an omelet bar that was closed when I got there, that’s about 80 feet long. Around the corner in the seating area, the BIG seating area, is a table with a vast array of coffee pots and things you can put in coffee cups to make it taste better. I was so amazed with this room that I just got a couple of cups of coffee and took them right back up to the room and convinced Diane she needed to put some underwear on and come down with me to look at it.

She did. She was amazed, too. We both ate but I made a bad choice and got french toast and actually put syrup on it. This resulted in an elevated BS level that needed attention with some exercise and water. So, we went outside and walked around the hotel. It took about 15 minutes to do that. I drank a bottle of water on the way. This made my stomach settle down and by BS level was down indicating it was going the right direction. Here’s a bicycle we saw during our walk. It’s been there for a long time. We think it’s probably a loaner bike because we saw more just like it at other bike racks around the base.

Then Diane decided it was time to visit the commissary to get things to last through the storm, just in case it decided to slam us, too. I already had 8 boiled eggs, from the hotel cafeteria, so egg salad was on the menu. Just needed mustard to make it really good.

While at the commissary, we continued our exercise by walking up and down every isle in the place. We went at a moderate pace, just slow enough to keep from sweating.

There were so many bags of food I had to use the luggage cart to get them to our room. Diane put things away while I took the cart back to the lobby. By the time I returned it was pretty much cleaned up and ready for me to make that egg salad.

I used four eggs which gave us enough for four sandwiches. Since we only ate one each, there’s more for tomorrow. Before I ate, however, I checked my BS again. It was down to 90 and I could tell it was time to eat. I may have salivated a little bit while make the egg salad, but I’m pretty sure I didn’t salivate on the eggs. I’m guessing, of course, because it would’ve blended right in and there was no way to tell for sure. So far, Diane hasn’t displayed any symptoms of sickness of any kind so think I’m good here. Until she reads this. Then it’s lights out and means I’ll get to eat the remainder of the egg salad all by myself. Unless Cedric wants some, of course. We should be picking him up for a day of hanging out, visiting, exploring, and napping. Here’s an off topic photo Cedric sent this afternoon of him in his cooking class uniform.

This afternoon, when Diane couldn’t find anything interesting on TV, she lay down on the bed and took a very loud nap. I, on the other hand, stayed in the living room portion and watched a movie – “The Fifth Wave”. On my iPad. We don’t know how to watch movies on our TV. Besides, all the channels are analog, not digital. It’s still a good picture, though, so can’t fault them for that. The majority of folks staying here are Army officers, new and old, who are, I believe, affiliated with the Logistics University adjacent to the Lodge.

When the movie was almost over Cedric texted me and we started going back and forth, carrying on a conversation. We didn’t know at the time that the text link he used also included his Mom. I was very thankful that we kept it clean because she surprised us both when she chimed in and commented that while she was gone taking her Mom’s Mom, Jean, to the doctor, she received 87 texts. Neither of us had any idea we had carried on that much.

Now it’s 2230 here and we’re getting updates from Jennifer about the soccer game going on in St. Helens. Our girls were winning 3-0 against Milwaukee. Our girls are 7-2 going in to this game and are ranked 4th in the state. They are doing extremely well. I’m told the Milwaukee girls aren’t taking the beating very well and have started with dirty tactics.

Here’s a pre-game photo that Jennifer took …

It’s Pink day. Since Lydia’s a goalie she dresses differently than the rest of the team so she didn’t have pink socks. Just pink paint on her face.

Jennie sent the next photo with the comment, “She’s wearing pants.” First time this year. Normally she wears shorts. But, she said it’s raining buckets at home now and I suspect pants would feel pretty good. But I think pants feel pretty good any time of the year.

Time to quit.

Day 16 – Fort Lee, Virginia

Posted on October 6, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

OK, folks. It really happened. We bailed out of Washington, D.C. and headed south to Richmond even though predictions for hurricane Matthew were not in our favor because it was heading north to meet us.

If you’ve been following this you will already know that our visit to Fort Lee was scheduled to be for one night only so we could visit Cedric. Well, bad weather in the Caribbean required us to cancel our intended visit to Myrtle Beach, SC, and interesting liberty rules on Fort Lee, for brand new military men conspired against us for a quick visit with Cedric.

First, the weather.

If you’ve been watching the news you’ll know that Hurricane Matthew is scheduled to crash right in to Myrtle Beach on Friday and create havoc in that area through the weekend. Because of that, all the lanes on all the freeways on the East Coast from Myrtle Beach south are only going west. All lanes. Because of that we would have found it difficult to buck all that traffic. So, Diane called Hilton and cancelled our visit and was able to wipe the slate clean even though cancellations less than a week before scheduled occupancy result in loss of all money paid, or all points used. The lady Diane spoke with ignored that rule and credited our account for everything we used to secure a spot in the Anderson Ocean Club for the coming week because we weren’t at fault.

Got that?

That was bad news, you’d think, because we only booked one night at Fort Lee and had to cancel our accommodations that would keep us indoors until we head for Virginia Beach on the 12th. After last night we were technically homeless. Where in the heck were we going to stay until the 12th?

We got to the Fort Lee Lodge early, around 2 pm, because it’s really not very far from Washington D.C. We were a bit stunned when we saw the place because it’s quite intimidating due to its enormous size. It so enormous that I could only capture bout 1/4 of it in this photo.

The young lady who greeted me at the reception desk was all bright and cheerful and said our room wouldn’t be ready until 4 pm after checking our name to confirm that we actually belonged there. While I had her attention I asked what the possibility would be for us to extend our stay through the weekend because we’d just been kicked out of Myrtle Beach since the hurricane was going to get real busy there in the next few days. Then I played the “homeless” card.

She looked at her computer, conferred with a co-worker and they shared some conspirational activities, pointing at the screen, nodding, and said they could do that. “When to you want to check out?” she asked.

“Ah, Monday?” I offered, not wanting to push my luck, then pushed it anyway by changing it to, “Tuesday?”

When she kept looking at me, as if waiting for something more in the form of a definitive statement, I became concerned that I’d exceeded the limits of her good will. “Sure,” she said. “We are OK until the 24th when we’ll be fully booked.”

When she said the 24th, I got all giddy and immediately said, “Wednesday! I want to check out Wednesday.” There. A definitive statement.

She still sent me away asking that we return at 4 to check in, so I left. I was happy, smiling, and was excited to share this news with Diane who stayed in the vehicle. She always stays in the vehicle when we check in to a hotel.

During our absence from The Lodge we found the BX, the Commissary, and the Gas Station. Those are places to be familiar with when visiting any military base.

At the BX we discovered the same Philly Cheesesteak sandwich joint we liked on JBAB and decided to give it another try. It was even better. Things were looking brighter all the time.

After eating our sandwiches we drove back to the hotel and parked in the lot where we sat and waited for the clock to slowly tick around toward 4 pm. Finally, at 3:58 we cautiously re-entered the hotel to get the key to our room so we could unload the car.

We made it to the front of the line and a young lady finished with her customer and beckoned me to her station. As I headed toward her the young lady who had helped me two hours earlier said, “No! I’ve got this one!” which kinda surprised me. So, I moved to the left, out of the way, so the Army Captain behind me could move on to the lady who have waved me over.

At the counter, the young lady, whose name I shamefully forgot to get, asked for my Military ID and a credit card. Anticipating this, I had them both in my hand and presented them to her. She got us logged in then stood there looking at her display while conferring with another co-worker who nodded when she referred to something on her screen. The nod was apparently approval for her unspoken query because she hit a key on her keyboard, turned to me and said, “There. I have a room for you on the 7th floor and I upgraded your room. For no charge.” That surprised me because it’s an Army hotel so why would there be upgrades available?

Not having anything clever to say, because I was totally not expecting this, I said, “works for me.”

She smiled and gave me all the stuff people at reservations desks have you sign. I did so, then she handed me the keys for room 7105. It’s a 7 story building so we were on the top floor. Diane’s favorite place to be. No one could dance on our ceilings during the night!

We took the keys and headed for the elevators. They have four of them just off the lobby. We had to dance around some young fellows who were scrubbing the marble floor in the short hall to the elevators. There were six of them. One on a scrubbing buffer, one with a mop, one with a mop bucket, one with a little grout scrubber, and two on either end working folks who were there, I think, to keep any of them from leaving. Kidding, of course. They were all working and very friendly and moved things so we could get to one of the elevator doors without stepping in puddles of soapy water.

An elevator. What a treat. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised because this hotel has 1,138 rooms. That’s true. I asked. I said the place is enormous already but it bears repeating. Just look up 2301 Mahone Ave, Fort Lee, VA on Google Maps then switch it to the satellite view. You’ll see for yourself.

While on the way up in the elevator both of us were wondering just what kind of upgrade we had received, and what kind of room we would have received had we not received the upgrade. It was with bated breath that Diane put her key in the little lock, watched it turn green, looked at me, then cautiously opened the door.

When the door finally opened all the way we were absolutely amazed to discover that our complimentary upgrade was from a regular room, with which we would have been totally happy, to a suite with an actual bedroom and a kitchen area with a large refrigerator, a dishwasher, and an actual garbage disposal in the sink that works. And, it’s got a Keurig coffee maker sitting right there on the counter with a lot of little Keurig cups in a nifty sliding drawer beneath it. How cool is that? It’s just beautiful. We want to live here now, but I don’t think they will let us. I haven’t asked yet.

Anyway, we’re gonna live in style until next Wednesday. Then we have to discover if Virginia Beach is accessible so we can take up residence in an undoubtedly inferior room at some ocean side resort. Whether or not it’s still there after Matthew does it’s work is still up in the air because no one really knows which direction he will turn once he churns up the coast and out to sea when it hits the Carolinas.

OK. That’s it for the room. Now let’s talk about Cedric, the reason we’re here. I texted him, and his Mom, when we saw the sign for Fort Lee.

Then again when we hit the gate.

He finally responded about 5 to say he wouldn’t be able to go on liberty to see us this evening because his Battle Buddy bailed on him. Battle Buddy is an “Army Thing” Cedric said which means no one goes on liberty alone. He was really bummed but got over it when he learned that we were going to be here through the weekend. He can’t see us tomorrow, either, because he has duty. So, we has Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to catch up. It’s going to be OK.

Now it’s time for bed. Diane said.

Day 15 – JBAB Anacostia

Posted on October 5, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

I didn’t do anything today except help Diane with the laundry. By help I mean I just did whatever she told me to do, of course. After that, she went to the exchange all by herself. I stayed in the room and watched a movie and two episodes of Quantico. I just love our Xfinity because we can watch recorded shows on our DVR from anywhere in the world.

A may have had a nap, too.

Later …

Day 14 – Washington D.C. Chinatown

Posted on October 3, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

When we got up this morning we didn’t have a plan about where to go. Diane said I was to have made a decision about that last night, and I kinda did, but didn’t tell her. I thought it would be interesting to visit Chinatown. I didn’t have a reason why other than it was on the green METRO line meaning we could get there without changing trains. That was apparently a good enough reason, so off we went to the Anacostia Station.

The train was pretty much empty on the trip, and not many got on at other stations so it was a pretty uneventful trip to the Gallery Place station. The exits for this stop are under a gallery (oddly) of many, many, stores, shops, bowling alley, bars, and a HUGE Regal Theater that has 14 screens. It’s actually right next to the Verizon Center which is home to the NBA Washington Wizards. I’m sure that’s true, but if any of you know differently, please chime in. I’ll do my best to pay attention. It’s also in Chinatown.

The first order of the day, after leaving the METRO stop, was to find a bathroom. So, we went into a handy door that appeared to lead into the Gallery’s innards where we were sure we’d find a bathroom. We went up and down escalators (more up than down) until we finally encountered an access point into the Regal Cinema.

We knew they had restrooms because all theaters have restrooms but, as luck would have it, only customers could use them. So, we bought tickets so Diane could use the bathroom. The tickets we bought were for “Storks” so we thought we may as well stick around and watch it. It as 11:41 am when we got to the ticket taker and she said we had plenty of time because there were 20 minutes of previews before the movie started. It was all good.

We sat in the theater, all by ourselves, and could hear the previews, but there was no picture. So, I went back to the ticket taker and reported this incident. Finally, someone got it going just in time for the movie to start. We really enjoyed the movie and highly recommend it. We used the restrooms both before and after the movie. Then we walked outside and Diane once again asked me what we were going to do.

I struggled for an answer, but didn’t have one, even though I had a map in my hands with all kinds of places we could visit. Finally, we decided to visit the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery which is directly across 7th Street NW from the Verizon Center. Really handy. While crossing 7th Street I noticed some food trucks parked on the museum side of the street and thought it was a really feeble attempt to match the parking lot full of similar trucks you can find all over Portland.

I had to go back and take a picture of the last one in line because it was a new one for me …

Doughnuts and fried chicken. Who knew?

The museum was filled with incredible paintings some of which are incredibly old. Most of the first ones we viewed were formal portraits of famous folks from history. The only one that really got our attention was this one because of frame …

It’s actually General Ulysses S. Grant. You know, the guy that’s buried in Grant’s tomb?

After walking around for a couple of hours we started getting a little light-headed and, as luck would have it, we stumbled across a snack shop on the inner patio of the museum. Diane just wanted fizzy water and I chose an orange Fanta soda. Total cost was $7.22, the most expensive drinks we’ve had since the last Blazer game we attended. Apparently, if you’re a ‘member’, things are considerably cheaper. Had we only know. Probably doesn’t cost much more than a few thousand bucks to be a member. I’m guess because I didn’t ask.

I loved my soda and nursed it slowly while sitting in this very quiet area. An interesting feature in there are three horizontal water falls. Sounds dumb, I know, but that’s what they are. They are actually three areas of the floor that are slightly depressed, slightly more on one side than the other. Water is forced up on the high side and it flows slowly across the stones to the low side. Very unique. I wanted to run through them, but Diane felt that would be a bad idea. So, I didn’t. In the photo the water is flowing from left to right.

Then I took a photo of Diane, like I always do when I have a chance, and liked it so much I’m going to share it with you.

In addition to some terrific art, the building itself is actually one itself. It’s 3 stories tall and each floor is different. I only took a photo of the Great Hall which is pretty magnificent.

There there was this view from one of the windows that I couldn’t resist. Have I ever mentioned how happy I no longer have to get film developed?

We were in the museum for 3-4 hours and by the time we decided to call it a day we were pretty hungry. Both of us decided that Mexican food would be really good which was handy because Rosa Mexicano was just across the street from the museum, and the METRO stop we needed for our return trip was just across the street from Rosa’s. How convenient.

We entered the restaurant between the lunch and dinner rush hours so the place was essentially ours for a little while. It’s a beautiful establishment and it smelled really good inside. Both of us chose to have guacamole made at the table and that was a treat. Except for the cilantro. I don’t care for cilantro. But that was OK because everything was delicious anyway. And, it looked really good …

I had my standard beef enchiladas and Diane had her standard cheese enchiladas. The rice and beans were served in bowls so we could take what we wanted. Clever. We each had three enchiladas. I ate all of mine and Diane left only about one bite. She did good.

By the time we were finished eating the place had started to fill up which pointed out a glaring error with our timing … people were getting off work meaning that we were going to be riding back on the subway during rush hour. And that’s exactly what we did. Making it more difficult, the METRO masterminds, I learned, send 6-car trains during rush hour but use 8-car trains on weekends. Makes perfect sense, don’t you think? Well, here we are making lots of new friends on our ride home …

We stood the entire trip. It wasn’t bad because there really wasn’t much of a chance we could have fallen down. Everyone on the train was very friendly. I don’t think it was out of necessity. I think that’s just the way they are all the time. Really nice folks.

Finally we got to the car and I was, once again, very relieved to discover that it had been towed. It was still right where we parked it.

I’ve been wanting to report what I discovered across the bottom of Washington DC license places but keep forgetting. Until now. On the way home, at a stop light, I took this photo …

Don’t you love it? I mentioned it at Arlington yesterday to one of the tour folks and was told that’s their motto. Since it’s on their license plates, I suspect that true.

On a side note, with Hurricane Matthew heading for the East Coast, we’re having second thoughts about our trip to Myrtle Beach, SC. Tomorrow we’ll call the resort and see what they have to say. Diane’s checking the weather frequently and her last report was that by Wednesday, the day we’re supposed to be there, it probably won’t be a hurricane. Just a ton of water falling out of the sky. We’ll see how that goes.

Many of you know that our friend Jewel is dog, cat and house sitting for us during this trip. Last week she performed an old person’s trick by falling down and breaking her right arm. In her defense, she tripped over the goofy little fence I helped her install around some new plantings by the front porch. I’ve tripped on that thing, too. Today she had her splint removed and had it replace with a pretty pink cast.

As you can see by her comment, she’s doing much better now. We’re thankful for that. Thanks for hanging in there, Jewel. During her trial with a splint, and pain, Jennifer pitched in to help. Daniel also added his expertise to give Ziva a bath after she decided to, again, adorn herself with eu du deer poop. Regarding that, I have mixed emotions because she’s either rolling in it, or eating it. I don’t like either of those choices, but think I like her eating it best. That way there’s really nothing to clean up. Yea!

Gotta quit now because Dancing With The Stars is on now. It’s Cirque du Soleil night.

Day 13 – Part 2 – Arlington & The National Cathedral

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Although it wasn’t planned, today was very humbling. We should have known that would happen because we’ve been to Arlington Cemetery before. Our primary reason for going this time was to watch the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknown soldier. If you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing it, you should make a point of doing it at least once in your life.

The best way to get there from the cemetery entrance is to get a ticket for the tram. That way you can tour the entire cemetery and an in-depth narrative about the cemetery history, and where lots of famous people are buried. It’s very interesting.

The tram also stops at The Tomb of The Unknown Soldier. It’s on the back side of the amphitheater. There are signs pointing the way. You can’t miss it. Now, look at the below photo and the location I was at when I took it. direction to my left is the path used by the relieving guard and their superior who conducts the ceremony for changing the guard. It’s very precise and very interesting to watch. I took a movie from this location, but can’t make it work on this blog. Apparently I’m not allowed to do that so you’ll either have to go there or check it out on-line by watching it on-line. The link is attached above.

From Arlington Diane wanted to go visit the Washington National Cathedral. We arrived about 3:30 pm to a fairly empty cathedral and we could hear a choir singing. We went to the front so we could hear them better and sat to listen. The music was beautiful. Turns out they were practicing for the 4:00 pm Choral Evensong.

When they stopped practicing the entire choir departed to the back of the area behind the wooden barrier and folks in the audience began walking behind the barrier. Not know any better, we followed along, learning that everyone was welcome. We sat next to the choir seats and followed the program that was given to us upon entering. Soon, the choir processed back into the cathedral from the back and resumed their seats near us and other observers. We were almost part of the service as we had a front row seat.

Near the end of the program the Homily was delivered by the Rev. Dr. Rosemarie Logan Duncan. She delivered a very powerful message about faith. At the end, it was evident that we had been treated to a very special church service. It was unexpected and therefore more special.

The above photo of the stained glass windows are an example of the dozens of similar windows that adorn the cathedral. They are magnificent.

Our GPS system failed us on the return trip and we found ourselves on the way to Baltimore before getting back on track. Consequently, a trip that should have taken less that 20 minutes took more like an hour. What fun. Once back in our room, we ate the rest of the tuna salad I made yesterday and had a bowl of soup with it.

It was a good day. A very good day.

Day 12 – The White House & the Holocaust Museum

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Although we only visited two places today, it took a lot of time. We we’re on our feet far longer than they wanted us to be on them. Same for knees and hips.

We left our room around 8:30 am and drove directly to the Anacostia METRO station. It really is only 10 minutes away. The parking facility is enormous. So enormous, as a matter of fact, that we had to park twice. Diane parked the first time and I parked the second time. The second parking was to take advantage of the handicap parking spots that are free if you have the handy-dandy card to display. Diane brought hers, so we had it. Using it also got us much closer to the METRO entrance.

Down we went, into the deep dark tunnel …

… where we sought a seat in the crowded waiting area …

… until, finally, one of those 600 foot trains zoomed in for a landing. They come in so fast you wonder how they can possibly stop before reaching the end of the platform. But, they always do.

We boarded and set McPherson Square as our final stop. This required us to switch from the Green line to either the Blue, Orange, or Silver line. It wasn’t actually very difficult but we made it so. Turns out it’s really good to know which side of the track to wait on for the car you want. Thankfully, there are lots of folks around who can answer those questions. Everyone was very kind. It pays to have gray hair.

I was surprised to discover that the McPherson Square station disgorged passengers from beneath this well known facility.

Since we were early for our assigned tour time, we chose to find a likely place to get a bite to eat. Not knowing anything about the area I approached a heavily armed Secret Service agent standing guard by a door into the US Treasury Department and asked if he knew where my friend Jim O’Neal eats when he’s in DC. He said “Absolutely,” and pointed across the street at The Old Ebbitt Grill.

Here he is again, in case you missed him the first time.

We made our way across the street without mishap and joined the throngs of people attempting to gain entry. Surprisingly, since there were only the two of us, we were promptly seated and served. Diane suggest that we share a frittata and move along on down the road. It was a good choice. It was absolutely the best frittata I’ve ever had. It was also the only frittata I’ve ever had and it was delicious. I’m going to buy whatever kind of pan they used to make so I can do it at home. For some odd reason, I failed to take a photo of the food. I always take photos of the food. Except this time. Just trust me, it was really, really good. I’m sure Jim would agree.

From The Ebbitt we hoofed our way down to the spot where vetted tourist are allowed to enter the White House. Turns out there are hundreds of folks who get approved to visit the White House every day and they keep the Secret Service agents busy checking IDs against their lists.

That was the first check. There were two more before we were allowed into the White House area, then there we were.

This was Diane’s favorite. Mine, too, I must admit. It is most definitely a Green room unlike the Blue room …

… that is most definitely not Blue. But, it has a pretty light fixture.

The Red room was a close 2nd to the Green room.

The dining room. Nice table, but I think the room would better represent America if none of the chairs matched, don’t you?

The guys with guns wouldn’t let me go up those stairs.

Then, all the sudden, we were back out side in the misty, humid air.

As we departed down the driveway I spied this Secret Service agent conferring with another one. Having a bad ass like this on my side gives me goose bumps. He’s the only agent I saw that was dressed totally in black. All the others had white shirts under their vests. I figure this gentleman must be one of the stealth versions.

After walking a fair distance away from the White House, we chose to sit for a few minutes to admire the view. It’s really a nice one from this perspective. Then there comes the moment when you must look down, like all old people do, to make sure of your footing, that you don’t step in a hole, or a wobbly brick, and encounter this …

People are basically pigs, I believe. It’s beyond most of them to spend just a little bit of time to police the areas they inhabit, cleaning up the mess they made. We found this especially true when standing in the long line, waiting to gain entrance. I have to add, however, that we didn’t see very many garbage receptacles around town. But, that doesn’t excuse people from not caring enough to find one.

We’d heard on the news that there was a rat problem in the city and leaders were working on a solution to control them. Looks like something controlled this little guy. Had Diane not warned me, I’d have stepped right smack on him. It appears as though he’s been posed equidistant between the two grey bricks. This photo was taken as we stepped into Lafayette Park and both of us found it very interesting that no one found a need to pick remove it.

Perhaps one of these little guys is a serial rat killer

After conferring for a bit, limping on our tired old legs, and sore hips and knees, we decided to go visit the Holocaust Museum. This was one of the incredible views we encountered on the way.

If you haven’t visited the Holocaust Museum, you should. Especially those who are convinced that it never happened. It’s a very sad tribute to some very brave people who were victimized by a delusional world leader. Diane cried during most of our trip through the displays, and movies, but is glad she endured. There were many displays she couldn’t bring herself to view so we passed those by. It’s very graphic throughout and I didn’t take any photos of the displays. It just didn’t strike me as the right thing to do. I didn’t however, take some photos of the serene chapel at the end where people could reflect on what they’d seen in a very calm atmosphere. It was a good ending to a very sad story.

The sign on the wall outside the museum was a good reminder for those who entered.

When we finally rejoined the world it was late. We’d spent almost 3 hours in the museum. Thankfully, there were padded benches throughout where we could sit and rest a bit while trying to comprehend the atrocities that were on display all around us.

We decided to call it a day and head back to JBAB and our room. On the way we stopped at the base commissary so I could get an onion and another case of water. Water because we’d run out, an onion so I could make some proper tuna salad for our evening sandwich supper

By 8:30 pm we were both nodding off so doused the lights and called it a day. A good day. Tomorrow we’re just going to drive around looking at “stuff” and not use the METRO. Arlington Cemetery is high on the list.

Day 11 – Washington DC – Finding Anacostia

Posted on September 30, 2016 by Jerrie Cate

Hi – Today was one of discovery. Specifically, discovering the location of the Anacostia METRO station. On a map it’s pretty simple. Like, it’s right there in plain sight, right? On the green line just before it crosses the Anacostia River. It’s only 10 minutes away from where we’re staying.

So, you may wonder why it took us two hours to find it. Yes, that’s 2 hours. Well, I’m going to tell you.

First, Anacostia, besides being close to us, has a Park & Ride facility that makes it a perfect fit for our needs. Just 10 minutes away. From there we have access to every place we want to visit in Washington.

After leaving the base, based on my questionable directional instincts, we headed South on I-295. In a very short time we were at the National Harbor and it became evident that I had selected the wrong direction. Therefore, Diane had to find a place to turn around. Finally, we got headed in the right direction and knew for sure we were headed correctly when we drove past the base again. We could almost see the Navy Lodge as we whizzed on by.

In about 10 minutes we wound up at the Anacostia Transit Center which was evident because there were buses going every which way. Sadly, we couldn’t see a parking garage anywhere so we drove around on a bunch of roads near the transit center looking for the garage. We finally stopped out near the river so I could take another stab at finding the parking garage.

Shortly, a nice gentleman who was sitting nearby reading his paper looked over at us and immediately determined that we were lost. He gave us very specific directions about how to get to the garage facility. We drove away happy and promptly got lost when we misinterpreted what he meant by turning left at the 2nd stop light, then left again at the next. Sounds simple doesn’t it? Well, about two miles up Suitland Parkway East we knew we’d done it again.

We would have turned around sooner, but the parkway wouldn’t allow us to do that until we reached Stanton Road SE, the first stop light. We turned left and followed it until it t-boned Sheridan Road NE.

Against her best judgement, I talked Diane into making a right turn on Sheridan which brought us to the intersection above the transit center. Being in familiar territory, we took another trip down Howard Road SE. We’d been down that road about six times already, but apparently we needed another one. This time we went slower and looked to the right, instead of to the left, and encountered an unmarked driveway that we decided to investigate and guess what?! The METRO parking garage was right there in plain sight. You just couldn’t see it from the road.

We drove in to see what it was all about and discovered that the lower section had parking meters at every space which made me a little queasy thinking about all the quarters I’d have to haul around to park the car. Then Diane spied a sign that indicated it was for short-term parking. She drove around the corner and just about had to pay $4.90 for a 12 hour stay. Thankfully there was no one behind her so she could back around the corner and briefly into a metered spot where she could turn around. She did a lot of turning around today. She’s really good at that now.

Knowing we were finally in the correct location, we drove to the other end of the parking facility where I got out of the car and checked to see what was behind big gates. Turns out it’s the entrance to Metro station. Finally. While I was there I just went ahead and bought a couple of METRO passes for us to use while we’re here.

That meant we were totally set for our trip to the White House tomorrow for the tour we’re scheduled to attend. And it only took two hours.

We went back to the base, a 10 minute trip, and stopped at the NEX food court where we each had a sandwich from the Philly Cheesesteak place. Diane had a turkey version while I had a traditional sandwich. They were both excellent.