Yes, this final entry on our travels to California had to wait until Saturday morning because Friday was one ridiculously long day.
It began at 7:30 a.m. with some wrap up discussions at Costanoa. While 7:30 a.m. is really not that early in the morning, early is a relative term for many of the folks attending the discussions who consumed far more spirits than I did.
In case you were wondering what brought us to the middle of the wilderness for such a sustained period, it was a series of meetings facilitated by the Harwood Institute. The object of their efforts is to convene public leaders and encourage honest and frank discussions about the state of their respective communities. Hence, the latter part of the week was spent with leaders from Las Vegas trying to find the path to change.
Of course, little did we know that the path was so clearly marked for us...
This picture is from Santa Cruz, California. This is a little coastal town we explored during our 8 hours between the ending of Friday's meeting and our expected flight out of San Jose.
People often criticize my new home of Las Vegas for its over-the-top nature. However, one might consider Vegas a bastion of restraint when compared to parts of California.
Consider the idea of religious missions.
I'm sure you've heard of Mission Charities, which is a Christian effort to spread the word.
There is Mission Prisons, which works to rehabilitate convicts. There is International Mission, Mission of Hope, Mission Las Vegas -- all of which consider it their Christian role to serve others.
Well, in this part of California, their mission takes on a slightly differnt purpose...
Those in this part of California have also seemed to have adopted some sort of adaptation of the ideology of the Druids that built the famous Stonehenge in the English countryside.
Here's a picture of our visit to one of their most sacred religious sites...
It seems to involve some sort of ceremony paying homage to Stonehenge but incorporating the California health sensibilities of giant slices of cantaloupe.
Of course, health food seems to be going the way of the dodo bird in this part of California.
Instead, they pay homage to another of the great health foods of our time. Look at this plaque celebrating the history of....
Yes, funnel cakes.
In the great spirit of the funnel cake, they have decided that you can deep fry most anything. For instance...
Twinkies!
And for those of you look for a healthy alternative, you must know that many things are great when deep fried...
Deep fried artichoke hearts and zucchini.
Whoda thunk?
After a very long day of exploring, we finally decided to head to San Jose and the airport for the trip home to Las Vegas. As is the case with every one of my trips if I'm not lucky enough to have my family with me, I was preparing to return with a bag full of gifts and toys for my wife and children.
Of course, some folks seem to have a different idea of what would be a nice souvenir to bring back from California for our families back home in Las Vegas.
Consider Stacey, one of the folks from our staff...
Yes, as a gift for her family, she's bringing home a lottery ticket.
A quick pick twenty draw super lotto ticket, to be more precise.
Ah, you just gotta love the sense of humor of folks who live in Las Vegas!
So we returned the rental car and headed in to the airport terminal and saw some words that are truly the most ridiculous things I have ever seen at an airport...
The Northwest Airlines sign next to another sign that says, "No Waiting."
Uh huh.
Well, I returned home to my wonderful family to discover my two littlest girls trying deparately to wait up for me, but they didn't quite make it...
Alyssa recieved her gift late Friday night, but only next morning when the other 5 kids awoke did I gave them their presents. It included a toy submarine, play scubadivers, and other water toys from the coast of California.
Of course, they all immediately decided that it was time to take a bath at 9 o'clock in the morning...
It's good to be home.
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