Regularly Scheduled Programming

Posted on October 24, 2019 by SusanG

Hopefully you enjoyed the interlude of the Australia trip. I can’t tell you how many people, when I told them I was going, told me that it was on their bucket list and that they would love to go. A word to those people. It’s a long trip. It’s worth it. But you will never go unless you really start making plans to go. Maybe it won’t be this year or next, but start making plans. And go. Now back to our regularly scheduled programming of guitars, music, art and day jobs.

This is a box didgeridoo.

Last week I made it back to the Blues Jam. I had a great time. It was fun. We had some fresh talent in on vocals. Always a treat for those of us who sing. Not that I got to benefit from it. Still a treat. You might remember me mention a musician that I felt was really too over the top for the jam and kind of took away some of the fun. That musician was there and while he did get a little wild he was much less so. By toning things down some, we could actually hear his talent and skill. Maybe it’s just me. I’d rather be judged by what I can do and not whether or not I can live up to what my mouth says I can do. 

Personally I got to try a set of songs where we pulled back on the tempo just a bit and I felt like I managed the best performance of ‘Voodoo Woman’ that I have done so far. And I think I survived ‘Little by Little’ mostly in tack. Getting a good performance of a song helps me a lot. It gives me something to work from. I can remember, in this case, that a slower tempo helps. Then when I practice it, I work on remembering that and building from there. I also had someone ask about doing a particular song, that I’ve done before just not in a while, the next time we get in a group together. That was unexpected and cool. Especially since I’d just found a slightly better way to play that song. So now I get to practice it again. 

Me. Singing and playing.

There’s lots going on at the day job. There are projects that reach their peak next month. And after that there will be a bit of downtime before some realignment changes occur. We will be integrating more with our colleagues overseas. I expect there may be some challenges as well as some great opportunities. Personally, I’m looking forward to learning new things. It doesn’t mean I will be changing, completely, what I do. I still have a couple more certification tests to take for the database stuff. I keep trying to get started on studying for the next one. Maybe, I’ll make it past page five soon. Mostly what the changes mean is that I will get additional stuff to do and learn. And for me that is exciting. 

I’m also trying to get back to doing more art. That was one of the things the trip to Australia stirred in me. Though I’ve made my 3D cards each year, and have a great time seeing them come together, it is different than working in pencil and pastel and ink. And I have not been doing that consistently and I kind of miss it. I still have some of the 3D stuff I want to do. I have a whole big idea that I’d like to put together. Along with that I have a drawing that I’m working on that’s of a Blue Footed Booby. I have had it outlined for a while and sat down to work on it again a week or so ago. I felt a little overwhelmed at the detail. Which is strange for me. I think it’s because I have not been doing it as much. Funny how when we are out of practice something we felt so comfortable with before can become overwhelming or intimidating. 

Nick Singing and playing

I’m not likely to let that stop me though. I really like that particular bird and have a concept for it in mind that I think will look really interesting. And I have some things I took pictures of while in Australia that I took the pictures because I thought they would be fun to create a piece of art from. So there is that. 

As always, I have a lot of things going and a lot more that I want to do. I really could use about four more hours in my day. It’s all good stuff though and much of it fun and exciting. I’m looking forward to sharing it all as I get to it, the music, the art, even the cool new stuff at the day job. For now, I’ve got some pictures from the last jam.

Blues Jammin’


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Wrapping Up The Aussie Trip

Posted on October 15, 2019 by SusanG

Finally. Melbourne!

From Alice Springs I caught a flight south to Victoria and more specifically Melbourne and to my friends. This was the whole point of the trip really. But, if you are going to fly 9,009 miles you might as well spend some time seeing all the bucket list things. Which is what I did for the first part of the trip. The last half of the trip was a chance to get to visit with my friend and his family. This is a friend that I have known for more of my life than not. We started as penpals back when people still wrote letters. And there’s a really good chance I still have the very first letter he sent.

So my friend and his wife greeted me on arrival at the gate. Remember when we used to do that in the US? And then we were off. The plans were to spend the weekend in Apollo Bay and to follow the Great Ocean Road to visit the Twelve Apostles. Disclaimer here. Apparently there are not twelve there are nine now and there never were twelve but the Nine Apostles doesn’t sound as good. It doesn’t matter how many there are it’s still some of the most stunning views I’ve seen. And the drive, it turns out is considered the most scenic drive in Australia.

On our way to Apollo Bay we made a side visit to a lighthouse and I got my first view of the southern ocean and some beautiful waves and amazing cliffs. At this point I’m already on over load for the beauty of it all. I do love the ocean and unfortunately since I’ve been in Charlotte I’ve spent entirely too little time visiting one. So the sights and sounds were food for the soul.

We made another side trek to visit the rain forest. There are two in Australia. The the tropical rain forest up in Queensland which I visited earlier in the trip. And there is one in Victoria that is not tropical but still a rain forest and still beautiful. And while the climb down to where we could see the waterfall wasn’t too bad, I thought the climb back up just might kill me. Or at least make me pass out. It was worth it though.

The only thing that didn’t go as planned on the trip was a balloon ride that was scheduled. The weather forecast for the day of the ride was expected to be rainy with poor visibility. So I wasn’t surprised on our drive to Melbourne at the end of the weekend, that we got rained on. I was pleasantly surprised that we got into town just in time to visit a musical instrument store whose inventory I had been ogling off and on for the last year. They have new and mostly used instruments. Some quite collectible and some not so much. At one point I’d been eyeing this cool looking Burns guitar in a green and black burst. My friends made a special stop so I could check out that place. And to my joy I found a Burns hanging on the wall and was allowed to play it. It’s got a nice punchy sound that is a bit of a cross between a Telecaster and a Stratocaster.

Since the balloon ride was cancelled and my friend had the day off we took the train from the suburbs into the city center (CBD) and visited some of the arcades and a couple of chocolate shops. And a couple of cool book stores. One just had a lot of books. The other was a bit more specialized. It had a lot of art type books and books on design and art movements and the like. Turns out to be a particular treat for my friend who is a graphic designer. I enjoyed it very much as well. I loved seeing such a collection of books of that style and subject matter. We also visited a fun CD and vinyl shop that was in the basement of the building. They even had a stage. I posted a photo on Instagram about it and they responded that they have musical performances there on record shop day. How cool.

And as a topper, we visited the National Gallery of Victoria. That was fascinating. It was amazing to see so many works by Australians or that featured Australia or its people as the subject matter. It was also interesting to note the similarities of how Aboriginals were depicted in relation to how the slaves or Native Americans were depicted. It was also interesting to note a few of the water color paintings for their richness and the difference in the water color technique. Yes. We did all that, and had breakfast, in just that one day. And I have no regrets about not going on the balloon ride. I think my time was well spent as it was.

I did have one more excursion. The next day I was off for a gourmet tour of the Yarra Valley. This is the wine region of Victoria. I first had to ride the train back into town to be at the pick up point. Which was part of what the day before had been for. It was a trial run to find my pick up point and for me to know how to get there. The weather was beautiful. Nearly clear skies and not too cold. Yes we had wine before 10:00 am. And it was good. We had specialty cheeses and nice fruits and we had a lovely lunch. Then we had more wine. As well as a lesson in wine tasting and bit about wines in general and what is popular and why. It was really educational and fascinating. And then we topped the trip off with a visit to the Yarra Valley Chocolaterie. Yes I did bring some home. No it did not last very long.

The next day I was due to leave Australia. But first a visit up to the mountains outside of Melbourne where we could view more beautiful scenery and get a view of the city. It was a bit hazy that day but I still tried to get a picture of the city where you could just see the CBD through the haze. And then off to the airport for the trip home. I went there thinking, that at this point in my life it would probably be the only time I would get to go there. As I said farewell to my friends at the airport I found that I had changed my view on that. Instead of this being the only time I would make it to Australia, I was thinking, you know I could come back. And I would. I don’t need to try to see all the things I did on this trip. I’ve seen them. I’d do it differently. I’d make more time to explore in Sydney and Melbourne. I’d try to see a few places I missed, just because. And I’d choose different things to focus on. I loved every minute of the trip. Even the walks and hikes I thought were going to be the end of me. Even the sinusitis that hit me in Sydney and plagued me the rest of the trip. I’m so glad I went.

The most challenging part of the trip was not even getting back to the states. Or customs and immigration. It was getting from San Francisco to Charlotte. And then it was the jet lag. I honestly did not expect it to be as bad as it was or to take as long as it did to feel like I was all in one piece. For a least a week to 10 days I felt like my body was one place, my stomach in another and my brain in yet another place. But once everything caught up with each other I found I have a little different look on things. I couldn’t give you specifics. And it doesn’t matter. Travel like good art and good music is meant to touch you, open your mind and your heart to new sites, sounds, feelings, and ways of thinking. Mission accomplished.

Enjoy the pictures. I chose a few from the last half of the trip that I think really show off the beauty of the coast.

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Australia – The Big Rock

Posted on October 7, 2019 by SusanG

From Queensland I hopped a plane to Alice Springs. This was an interesting flight as we stopped at Ayer’s Rock Airport where I got off the plane for about 20 minutes and turned around and got back on the same plane before going on to the Alice Springs Airport. Both airports made me feel like I was in a James Bond movie. They were so small and sparse and remote feeling. It was surreal.

Alice Springs started the day I arrived with a tour called A Town Like Alice. This is where I got to learn so much more of the history and interesting bits of Australia. We saw the old Telegraph Station, and stopped in at the School of the Air, visited the Royal Flying Doctors, and the Reptile Center, and a brief stop at the Anzac Memorial.

The School of the Air is that famed or fabled school for the children on the cattle stations that was originally conducted via radio. Now days it’s conducted via internet. That was interesting. As was the story of the Royal Flying Doctors. Yep. They are a medical service that fly the country and particularly service the more remote areas. Amazing stuff. The Anzac Memorial was nice. Though it was cold and I was ill prepared for that so just a few photos was all I managed. The Reptile Center turned out to be particularly useful and comforting for my trip to the rocks the next day.

At the Reptile Center we learned how not to get eat by a Crocodile. We also learned how not to get bit by a snake. Australia has the most deadliest snakes in the world. Some have venom that will kill you in 15 minutes if left untreated. And even with that, they have the highest survival rate of snake bite victims. So we were taught what to do to avoid getting bit in the first place as well as what to do should you get bit. Those are very important because the rules are not the same as they are in the rest of the world. We were also reassured that we should be safe going out to the rocks as the ground was still too cold for the snakes to be out and about. Though a week later and things would likely be different. So timing is everything.

On the way to the rocks we stopped to have a view of the Salt Lake. Yes they have a massive salt lake in the middle of the country. We had to climb a particularly tall and uncooperative sand dune to see it. It was quite a sight to see the white salt against the red dirt.

I call them the rocks. That’s what they are. Both are sacred sites to the Aboriginal People. There is the set once known as the Olgas but is more properly called Kata Tjuta. This site is still used for ceremonies so sometimes it is closed to visitors. We were lucky. There were no ceremonies and so we got to see it. Then there is the one that is most famous. Formerly known as Ayer’s Rock, it is more properly known as Uluru. When I was there you could still climb it. I did not. It was straight up and without a rope for part of it. I took pictures from inside the bus. It’s supposed to be closed to climbers now to better preserve it. Uluru was the main event of this trip. We toured some areas around it’s base and saw some rock art as well as a watering hole. The final even for the visit was a sunset barbeque to watch the sunset and magically change the color of Uluru. It was an amazing site to see.

After all the red of the inner area of Australia the next day was off to the greens and blues of Victoria. Melbourne and my friends were the next stop.

  • Alice Springs Telegraph Station
  • Local wildlife
  • Reptile Center lizard
  • Horned lizard at the reptile center. Well camouflaged
  • Another well camouflaged horned lizard
  • View of Alice Springs at sunset from the Anzac Memorial
  • The Salt Lake
  • View of Kata Tjuta as we hiked up between the rocks
  • End of the line between the rocks of Kata Tjuta
  • First view of Uluru
  • Rock art at Uluru
  • The face in the side of Uluru
  • Uluru about 30 or so minutes before sunset
  • Uluru changing colors
  • Uluru
  • Uluru
  • Uluru continuing to dazzle
  • And finally Uluru just about ready to say good night
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After Sydney then Queensland

Posted on October 1, 2019 by SusanG

More of the Australian adventures. Sydney was just the first 2 days.

From Sydney I caught a plane and headed up to Cairns airport in Queensland. You’ll notice, I have a few flights internal to Australia. That’s because Australia is as big as the continental United States. I would not have been able to see everything I did if I didn’t fly between places.

Cairns wasn’t my final destination in Queensland. I was headed up to Port Douglas. So after the flight I had another hour or so car ride to my hotel. Not a wasted ride though. The route we took is one of the top 10 most scenic drives in Australia.

My hotel was just a block or so from the beach and once I got settled I went and had a look. I even ate dinner at a surf club and had a lovely view of the ocean between the foliage. Not a bad start to my stay there. Port Douglas was my base for seeing the Great Barrier Reef and the tropical rain forest. Both busy days.

First up was the reef. What I didn’t know or realize is that the reef is made up of a bunch of smaller reefs. The one we went to is called Agincourt II. One thing you should know, is though I wanted to see it, I no longer snorkel. It will be very extreme circumstances that get me to do that again. Still I was going all that way and the reef is endangered so I wanted to see it. Fortunately, the tour I took had a platform with an underwater viewing area as well as a semi-submersible that took a bit of a tour of the reef away from the platform. That’s how I got my reef pictures.

We got really lucky on the reef. The trip out was smooth. The water was calm, clear, and glassy. And it was that way most of the time we were out there. The waves started picking up about a half hour before we were ready to leave so it was quite a pleasant visit. The ride back got really rough. Really rough. Several people got ill. Fortunately, I did not. I was able to use something I learned from a cruise I took many years ago. As long as I didn’t try to focus on anything, I was fine. That said, it was really rough and had it lasted too much longer even that might not have helped.

The next day was the rain forest. This consisted of a sky-rail ride up to a town called Kuranda and then a bus trip from there to a place called Rainforestation. I enjoyed the visit in the town but felt like it was too short. I would have liked a little more time to wander around. Still I managed to spend enough time there to spend some money. I got a belt, because I had neglected to pack one, some jewelry, and a box didgeridoo. Then off I went to see the rain forest and the mini zoo there. I was the only one scheduled for the zoo tour at that particular time, or at least the only one who showed up, so I got a personal tour. That was great. I saw a variety of creatures, including a crocodile, koala, and kangaroo.

I kept thinking that I’d get a little laundry in before it got really necessary but at the end of both of those days I was too beat to actually do it. I was already falling asleep by 8:00 pm both nights. A good thing because my pickup for the airport the day after the rain forest was for stupid early in the morning, and it was another hour drive back to Cairns to catch the plane to the next location.

There’s more to come. Enjoy the pictures of Queensland

  • Beach in Port Douglas Queensland
  • Coral on the Great Barrier Reef
  • A fish and some coral
  • More fish and coral
  • Coral
  • On my way to the rain forest
  • View from the sky rail on the way to the rain forest
  • Our Duck Boat puttered through that little lake
  • Fun lizard hanging out
  • Sleepy Kangaroo
  • Crocodile nap
  • A Koala and her little one
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Back From Down Under

Posted on September 24, 2019 by SusanG

I’ve returned from the trip to Australia. At least physically. I think my brain, or at least my sleep schedule might be stuck somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. The jet lag going over was pretty much a non-issue. Coming home has been another story.

Before I left, whenever I told someone where I was going they always responded with ‘take lots of pictures’. I did comply. I think. When I downloaded the pictures of the camera there were 993 and less that 10% of those were blurry or bad so I do have a lot of pictures. Some were things just I found interesting and then others were definitely of the sites.

I had hoped, and intended, to do more posting while I was in Australia. What I didn’t count on was just how tired I would be at the end of the day. So that didn’t happen. But because of all those pictures, I’ve got plenty to jog my memory and tell you about. I’m planning on breaking things up into the areas I visited so as to not cause ‘vacation photo fatigue’. I hope it works.

With that I’ll start with Sydney since that is where I started my trip.

Sydney is quite metropolitan though they ‘only’ have 5 million people. I was staying right in the CBD or Central Business District and also right on the edge of Chinatown. I have always lived in the suburbs. I’ve visited a few big cities in my life and yet nothing really prepared me for Sydney CBD. Especially on a Friday evening near Chinatown. Holy cow. That place was over the top full tilt. So many people and so much going on. I was in awe. And suffering sinus/allergy issues so all my thinking capacity was involved in finding an allergy pill and then my hotel. Which means I didn’t get pictures of what the city was like. I’m not sure it would have done the experience justice though. But wow. While in Sydney I toured the Opera House, took a boat ride through the harbor so saw the Harbor Bridge. And I had a bus tour of the city and among other things I saw Bondi Beach. So that’s what I’ve got for pictures for this post. Enjoy.

  • Sydney Harbor Bridge
  • Sydney Opera House
  • Another shot of the Sydney Harbor Bridge
  • Sydney Opera House
  • The inside of the Sydney Opera House
  • From inside the Sydney Opera House
  • Sydney Opera House from the water side
  • Seagull over Bondi Beach
  • Someone catching a wave at Bondi Beach
  • Another view of Bondi Beach. Amazing waves.
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