Winthrop (Not Gary Indiana)

So, a couple weeks back Trish shot an independent film with Sage Bannick called The Evil Within up in Winthrop, WA. This is kind of a funny coincidence, because the first play I ever worked on was the Music Man, and one of the main characters is named Winthrop, and... well, ok, maybe it's just funny to me.

(Well, ok, maybe it's just funny to me...)

ANYWAY... the production flew Trish to Winthrop, and on the weekend I drove up to the Wolfridge Resort join her for the evening, and then drive her back the next day (after doing a short stint in the film myself as an airline representative... don't blink or you'll miss me when the film is actually released :) ) It made for long few days in the car... I had an industrial shoot down in Eugene the Friday before I left and the Monday after we returned... but it was worth it to spend some exclusive time with Trish on the way back down.

Most of the time up in Winthrop was spent working... but I did manage to snap a couple of vacation photos while we were up there...

My companions on the drive up... lots of coffee, water, and a Jack Reacher audiobook

Can't you tell how much Trish LOVES having her photo taken?

Well, ok, maybe these photos weren't really worth sharing... if we'd been in that "mode," we probably would have pulled off to the side of the road and taken some shots of the waterfalls and mountains we passed on the way back to Portland from Winthrop... but by that time we were just interested in getting home so I could get some rest before heading down to Eugene.  Still, it was a great opportunity to get something of a break in between our various projects...

Pilgrimage

So, you remember the post I published Sunday about family stories, and how important they are? That little meditative ramble was actually a prologue for the next couple of weeks.

As I write this, Trish and I are packing up for a family trip to Arizona with my parents.

Yes, I know, Arizona isn't all that popular at the moment... the state's been in the news a lot lately, and not for the right reasons (in my opinion).

But, land-of-the-crazies or not, Arizona is the soil my family's roots are planted in, and a lot of my extended family are still there. As I said in that previous post, my ancestors' names, birth and death dates are easy enough to find on Ancestry.com or any of a number of online resources... what I can't get from those databases, though, are the stories behind those names and dates. We don't know anything about the people who came before us unless those stories are recorded and shared.

I've always been somewhat interested in my family history; getting it all recorded, however, took on a greater significance when my brother's son Christopher was born. I'd kind of like to know this stuff for my own edification and entertainment... but HE might want to know the story of our family, and tell it to his children, and their children, and... yeah. You get the picture.

Besides, it's a good excuse to spend some time with my mom and dad. We only live six hours away from each other, but if you're a regular reader you know how busy Trish and my life can get. We sometimes go months in between seeing each other - the chance to spend a couple of weeks with them isn't something I want to pass up.

So, if you follow me on Twitter, Facebook or Foursquare, don't be surprised if you see me "check in" at some new and different places over the coming days. We'll be covering a lot of the state over the next couple of weeks; as with other trips Trish and I have taken, I'll probably post some photos on our PhotoBucket page - and heck, I'm taking the Flip with me... I might even stick a couple of videos up on my YouTube channel.

Treat Portland well while I'm gone... I'll see you all in a bit!

Those Alaska Slideshows

Hey folks

You might remember that a while back, I took down the links to the photos I'd posted from Trish and my Alaska Cruise, saying that I'd restore them once the photos had been re-arranged.

Well, the best-laid plans and all that... between everything that's been going on and my trying to find some time to spend with my lovely wife, I never quite got 'round to doing that... but Trish and I are sort of taking it easy this weekend, and it felt like a good time to get these shots back out there to you all.

So... click the images below to see slideshows from the cruise... of course, if you want to see ALL the pictures, feel free to visit the full gallery at http://s169.photobucket.com/albums/u229/trishandharold/Alaska%20Cruise%202009/ ; be aware, though, that there are over 250 images in the gallery. You might want to let the slide-shows play and save yourself the carpal-tunnel you'd get by clicking on each image. You can hit the "stop" button in the lower-right-hand corner if you want to pause the slide-show... and if you want a larger view of a photo, just click on it.

I've said this to a lot of people since returning from the cruise... but if you've ever thought of taking a cruise, you really should. Before I left, I was one of those "why would I want to be trapped on a boat for a week?" types of people... this trip really opened my eyes, though. You're not trapped on the boat, for one thing - the ship docks regularly in different ports-of-call so you can get out and see different areas. Also, you're not "trapped on a boat;" you're booked into a five-star-resort (with, I might add, five-star food and entertainment) for a week... it just happens to float.

Seriously... if you've ever thought about it, go. You won't be sorry. The slide shows are below (each has its own individual post)... enjoy the rest of the weekend!

-Harold