REFLECTIONS ON A WILD ROAD TRIP

Buba and Boca logged almost 22,000 miles in the car...and more miles flying and ferrying. How would you do inches away from your spouse 24/7 for several months? It was dicey at times but we did it contrary to the betting pool predictions. Buba did the driving and I did...? He prepared our on the road meals and I did..? He gassed us up and packed us up and I did...? He figured out and plotted the routes and I did...? He made sure the car was clean, oil was changed and tires were rotated and I did...? He made sure we had clean clothes and I did...? He was the consummate guest and I was...? Oh yes, I Blogged! So thank you blog readers for riding along with us. Thank you family and friends for taking us in and offering up such loving hospitality and fun. It was a trip of a lifetime. I hope you enjoyed a taste of it and perhaps were inspired to do your own road trip in this beautiful country of ours. Happy Trails and God Bless America and you!

OCMC

What a wonderful experience traveling from Orthodox Church to Orthodox Church as OCMC Ambassadors while on the road. We met so many wonderful new friends. We learned there are many ways and customs to worship as an Orthodox. I noticed that our friends at the Orthodox Church of America-where they do their service in English- really draws young people and converts. So a big thank you to all of the church folks we met. And the pinnacle of the trip was our Mission up in Tyonek, Alaska. It truly was a transformational experience. We hope in some way that we not only brought some strong shoulders to work on the Church bell tower but also the love of God. We loved working with our OCMC Mission Team. They were relentless in their hard work and sharing their love of the Church. I am grateful for being part of such a fabulous Team. I am also thankful to my new brothers and sisters in Tyonek who welcomed us to their village. My new Athabascan friends are warm and kind and showed me the Native American way of life in this day and age. Alaska truly is a special place and they showed us just how special. Thank you Brothers and Sisters of Tyonek. Native Pride!

And a big thank you to the Orthodox Christian Mission Center for allowing us to participate in this mission. We loved being a part of a Pan Orthodox team and mission. God Bless!

http://www.ocmc.org/


FISHER HOUSES

We visited 17 of the 33 Fisher House locations (44 houses). This unique private-public partnership that supports America's military families in their time of need and recognizes the special sacrifices of our men and women in uniform humbled us. In one Fisher House after another they were warm, welcoming, filled with love and hope. The House Mangers were committed people. We are in awe of-their dedication to the soldiers, vets and their families. Everyone of the people we met will remain an inspiration forever. Good job Fisher House Managers. We look forward to visiting the remainder of the 33 Fisher House Comfort Homes. As a matter of fact, we will set up a separate blog for the rest of the Fisher Fun Journey. It was a pleasure to spread the good word about the Fisher Foundation and all the terrific work they do. So many who are not connected with the Military did not know about this phenomenal organization and of course the opportunity to participate by donation or anyway they see fit. We salute the Fisher Houses and the Foundation for all that you do for our Military Families!

http://www.fisherhouse.org/

NATIONAL PARKS

Most people know that the National Park Service cares for national parks, a network of nearly 400 natural, cultural and recreational sites across the nation. The treasures in this system – the first of its kind in the world –have been set aside by the American people to preserve, protect, and share, the legacies of this land. People from all around the world visit national parks to experience America's story, marvel at the natural wonders, and have fun. Places like the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty, and Gettysburg are popular destinations, but so too are the hundreds of lesser known yet equally meaningful gems like Rosie the Riveter in California, Boston Harbor Islands in Massachusetts, and Russell Cave in Alabama. The American system of national parks was the first of its kind in the world, and provides a living model for other nations wishing to establish and manage their own protected areas. The park service actively consults with these Nations, sharing what we've learned, and gaining knowledge from the experience of others. There are 58 National Parks and we have visited 50 of them....8 to go...Samoa here we come! While each park was a unique experience Buba's favorite was Wrangle St. Elias/Alaska and mine was Bryce/Utah-just loved all that psychedelic orange. Pleep was very partial to Lake Clark/Alaska and the bears. As a matter of fact there was an increase in visitors over last year for all of the National Parks. You bet- not only exquisite nature and geology to see you could also be proud of this great country and its care of the land. We are enjoying the special series on PBS showcasing the National Parks. What's your favorite park?

http://www.nps.gov/

Pleep has been working hard on his memoirs of the trip. Right now he's concentrating on the video version. He's used his favorite people & places pics. Then he used two of his favorite songs from the trip: Willie Nelson's On the Road Again and Jimmy Buffet's Take Another Road. Buba will be happy when Pleep stops singing them around the house. LuLu likes to watch the video so she can get caught up on all the details. Once he gets all the pics from the "real camera" organized, he's planning a DVD. We'll let you know when it opens in a theater near you.

AND A BIG HUGE THANK YOU TO PEGGY HEIDKAMP BLOGMEISTER EXTRAORDINAIRE. Peg was with us every day fixing all of the pictures I deleted by accident and keeping me on track and task...even while she was in Italy on holiday. And her crowning glory was putting together a hardcopy of the blog- the size of War and Peace. We love you Peg and can't wait for the next one!!!

DAY 130 HOME AGAIN HOME AGAIN JIGGITY JIG

Pleep crosses the Florida line and wants to see the 13 ft gators!! Although Pleep was "born" in Pensacola a.k.a. Baja Alabama,he considers this to be his exposure to the "real" Florida. He is very excited to be heading "home".
Pleep likes playing on the orange display...Boca was just praying he didn't start tyring to use them in a game of fetch with Lulu. That would have presented a lot of problems as this is a monkey free zone. Then it was on to the grapefruits. He started talking about that bowling alley in Chicago and wouldn't it be fun to use these as bowling balls.

He definitely wants a Gator hat too...with football season about to start he is very excited to cheer for the Gators. He says his monkey butt moves should be well received in Gainesville. Buba said no way as he was a Seminole from Florida State and no monkey of his would root for the Gators. Pleep sees what Florida has to offer...he thinks he will like his new home...Disney, Universal...but he wonders why most of the people at the rest stop are speaking Spanish??? Ole! Ole!

Almost home amen....almost done with blog mania!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you thank you to all of you have been following our journey and sharing our adventures. Still on turnpike but should be home soon...Buba, Lulu and Pleep are happy. Exhausted, tired, gritty but happy with the thought of sleeping in their own beds. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh and Amen!

Day 129 HOTLANTA AND BEAUTIFUL BUCKHEAD

Unlike Buba, I always loved living in Atlanta. Buckhead (within Atlanta's city limits) felt like country living by virtue of all the trees ,woods and even some horses. Yet it is only 15 minutes from downtown. So we take another walk down memory lane at the old homestead on 736 Conway Glen.

There were 7 houses built on this former estate of a Coca Cola heir. Our house was the only "spec" home and it made quite a splash in the Atlanta paper when we bought it...."Couple from Florida buys Buckhead house site unseen." . How? I had the Realtor take pictures of the house of course. Plus we had her take pics from every window, the other homes and all of the street, no surprises. She overnighted the photo's and I pieced and taped together the 200 photos and made a mock up of the house and hood. Voila-sold.

We put a lot of work and dough into the house and grounds. Buba never understood why I had to add 3 bathrooms to the 7 that were already there..... Maybe it was sharing that 1 bathroom all those years in Dolton had Boca overamp on the pee stations. Buba likes to remind me of this being the only house we have lost money on. Sour puss. I can see the new owners took it up a notch with the stone work and new garden-hey what happened to my Bradford Pear trees? And my Japanese Maple? Naturally, I wanted to go up to the door and get a tour but Buba would have none of it....so beep beep let's go....I must see what they did to the interior. I'll Be Back! When you go 'home" do you visit where you used to live?

I guess Buba still has a bad taste in his mouth about all the racial politics that went on during his stint in Atlanta-especially during the Olympics planning. Old Buba just didn't understand "why can't we just all get along?" My sad memory was going to Emory for 5 years to get my PhD and having to leave to go back to Florida (due to biz). The result was I did not finish my dissertation. After I did all the heavy lifting at the grad school, this was a big let down. Can you believe after blood sweat tears and linear programming and regression analysis that I didn't complete THE paper.

I thought it would be no sweat to return to Anro and finish off THE paper. Wrong. I saved the boxes of my research until I sold Anro and lost my jumbo storage space. What was I saving the papers for??? What was the point? I cried for 2 hours shredding the papers. I guess it meant the finality of an incompletion or as I saw it a failure. I remember starting back to grad school and hearing the term ABD. What is ABD? All But Dissertation. Huh? Who in the heck would go through all of this hard work and not complete the final paper?? Oh no, of course that would never be me. Well there you go. As I said a walk down memory lane-the good, the bad and the ugly.

Lovely Liza Llewelyn

Their sons went to school with Nick and Alex- Chris was in Nick's grade and Jared was in Alex's. Liza was the consummate Mom-so involved with the kids and their school. Including last year when she had both boys and a buddy post college living with them! Liza is one marshmallow. She pointed to her hubby's over 600 cookbooks and that he still enjoyed cooking and asked if Buba still did his cooking. Not as much as he used to as Boca Raon is the land of never ending reservations. We also shared our sadness with the recent loss of our dear friend Judy Haas. She succumbed to breast cancer after a long hard fight. Judy's kindness, love of life and philanthropic giving set the standard for many. She will be missed by both Liza and Boca.

Thanks again Liza it was fun to catch up. Enjoyed the wine and delicious cheeses....sorry about the "cheesey" bottle of Turning Leaf I dragged out of the car...that was meant for Alex!! Ha.

While Lana the cocker initially gave Lulu the cool shoulder they eventually warmed up to each other...Diva's!. The pet friendly Llewelyn house made Pleep feel right at home too. He enjoyed cat chasing. Love to David and the "boys"!

DAY 128 ADIOS CHICAGO...MAMMOTH NATIONAL PARK

Well we've headed out of town. LuLu is very happy to be included and looking forward to her return to Boca. Pleep loves catching a ride on LuLu. He says it will help keep up his cowboy skills.

Stopped by Dolton the south suburb I grew up in....the hacienda on Blackstone Ave. The hood is 100% African American, very different from the ethnic suburb I grew up in. The street looked very tidy and well kept so it was a joy to walk down memory lane. My parents bought the house in 1956 (I believe they paid around $24,000) . Yes one bathroom for Mom, 3 teen age girls and Buba (grandma in Serbian) who helped Mom raise us after my father died (my age 11). Mom sold the house in 1972 when she married Chris and moved to Kansas City.

We also went over to check out Mitzie's Snack Shop at the Dolton Bowl. Totally renovated and updated and hi tech. Pleep loved the hot pink and lime green bowling balls.

Mitzie's Snack Shop has been made into more of a fast food venue. After my Dad died and until I left for college I watched my Mom work 7 days a week 365 days a year.....it was what we knew. How she sent me to the college of my choice on selling "Bowlers Specials" for 58 cents is beyond me. The Bowlers consisted of a hamburger, fries and coke. Go figure.

This is definitely where I learned the South Side work ethic and can do attitude. I also learned that you can't depend on a man/husband to take care of you hence the relentless pursuit of my taking care of business. Back in the day most girls went to secretary or nursing school and the ones who went to college typically went for a teaching degree. The death of my father and watching my Mom work in her own business certainly shaped ol' Boca on what to do. Perhaps an example of life handing you a lemon and you do your best to make some lemonade out of it....def. a south side virtue.

Also stopped by Boca's high school, Thornridge. Happy to see it was in such great shape and well taken care of. My sophomore year (1967) the district start "busing" to this all white suburban high school. This was my first time to go to school with black kids let alone get to know and have some as friends. Today the school is "all" black as well as most of the neighborhood. My family had left the area (1972) before the suburban white flight took hold in Dolton.

Where did the neighbors go? Florida? Ah, further south to new suburbs I guess. I am grateful for all that I learned at Thornridge and for all the wonderful friends I made there. I have not missed one class reunion and absolutely look forward to them and reconnecting with my growing up posse. Yes, as painful as high school and teenage years can be my memories are of fun fun and more fun. I graduated in 1970 so you can imagine the fun I am talking about!

A fine way to say good bye to Chi-town....sliders. Pleep loved them. We hope he doesn't find out you can order them on line and have them shipped anywhere in the world.

MAMMOTH CAVE NATIONAL PARK

Located 85 miles from both Louisville and Nashville, this was the first park with no entrance fee or gate for the most extensive cave system on Earth. With over 365 miles of passageways Mammoth Cave is over twice as long as any known cave....they are guessing there may be another 600 miles of undiscovered passageways. The park was authorized as a National Park in 1926 and fully established in 1941 and named a World Heritage Park in 1981.

The park consists of 53,000 surface acres of which Buba, Pleep and Lu enjoyed chasing the turkeys and deer. Over 10,000 years ago the Paleo-Indians hunted animals in the Green River valley near the cave. From 4,000-2,000 years ago the early Woodland Indians mined minerals from the caves. Later when the European settlers arrived (around the late 1790's) the cave served as a mine for saltpeter a key to the manufacturer of gun powder....although Buba knows of another use for it. A must see for the spelunker!

DAY 127 MEETING THE BOYFRIEND AND THE BUI'S

MEETING THE BOYFRIEND

Ryan-the Golf Pro? A WHAT? drilled Buba. So he feigned a migraine and Boca had to go it alone. Alex started itching...MY MOM WITHOUT DAD to run interference TO MEET MY BOYFRIEND!!!.. A nice lunch at Millennium Park Cafe (or as Alex called it THE INTERROGATION) lasted only 3 hours. Boca just wanted to make sure dear Ryan understood what HIGH MAINTENANCE meant. Ryan did pass the Pleep Test. Yea.

OVER TO MONROE PARK

After a long lunch of grilling the poor guy we head over to 65 Monroe for another look at Alex's favorite condo. Buba made it perfectly clear to Alex what the rules are: no "living together" or any thing remotely like that....as Buba noted the Banker dictates the rules. Buba's World and Buba's Bank rules.

Boca drove the SUV up to the parking spot....round and round going 1 mile an hour backing up cars behind her, she was sure she was going to scrape the walls winding up to the 8th floor, Alex yelling MOM SPEED IT UP YOU ARE MAKING A PARADE! Certainly this will be the first and last round and round ride for Boca.

Alex wondering if she should pull the trigger and commit to "buying" a condo... Pleep thinks it's a great idea as loves the hot tub up on the roof and there's not a NO MONKEY'S ALLOWED sign so he is confidant he will be able to partake.

BUI BOYS

Over to the Bui's house...Alex was their nanny for 4 years and absolutely loves this family. They recently designed and built this beautiful house in the city....wow! Lots of green features. The very talented and brilliant Theresa and Kahn left Viet Nam in 1975 and through hard work and a good gene pool took advantage of what America had to offer. Both are PharmD's coupled with MBA's are are competitors in the Pharmaceutical world. We are grateful that some of their Asian culture and family values have rubbed off on Alex.

James and Andrew with Ali their favorite girl friend and a Giordanos Pizza. Nirvana!

The boys showed Pleep their bikes and special parking spots. Pleep looks forward to riding on their handle bars in the hood. The boys were very proud of their vegetable gardening skills and the tomatoes on the way. Pleep said he can hardly wait to get to Boca to plant his own. Thank you Andrew and James for taking care of our Alex. Good job!