New York, New York - Las Vegas

I love the new 9/11 display - I took pictures
of all the quotes along the walk way.

Ceasars Palace - Las Vegas

Even with all the new bling in Vegas,
there is still only one place where you can

find such noble, elegance.

Bellagio - Las Vegas

One of my favorite free shows is in front of the
Bellagio on the Las Vegas strip.
Frank Sinatra is piped in singing "Luck Be a Lady"...
Every fifteen minutes a different light/water show and music begins.
It's mesmerizing...
A cool breeze over the water,
a scoop of mint chocolate chip gelato,a peaceful moment amidst chaos.

House of Blues - Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas

The entry way into the House of Blues. These interesting looking fellows are made out of bottle caps.
I have no idea who this is suppose to be...
The food was pretty good and Danny our waiter
gave us comp tickets to the karaoke show.

We later discovered the show was free.

The entertainment wasn't bad. Live band playing
over the taped music. We suspect some of the singers
were ringers. This guy 'Lil Tony' was fantastic!

This man - sort of a John Belushi look alike - was also
unbelievable. His facial expressions alone were worth
the price of the show; or at least worth the price of the drinks.

Hard to describe this woman. She sat in a wheelchair with
three inch spike heels on. Then scooted herself across the
dance floor using only her feet, climbed the stairs to the stage
and jiggled and sang. It was extrememly strange and oddly entertaining.

The view...

I'm on the 31st floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort
in Las Vegas, NV. I can see straight down the strip. The view is incredible.

The pictures are a poor

substitute (too much reflection).

A walk down the strip

I left my rural life behind for a few days to attend a conference in Las Vegas. We had an 8:50 a.m. flight on Sunday morning and didn't leave the airport until 9:30 p.m. We were boarded and buckled for over two hours, only to be taken off the plane and have our flight cancelled. For 12 hours we entertained ourselves at the airport. We felt like Tom Hanks in the movie Terminal. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me. It was in my luggage that actually WAS in Vegas already. Stupid America West airlines. It's probably for the best anyway because my companions and I decided that what happens at the Minneapolis International Airport, stays at the Minneapolis International Airport.

This young man was entertaining people on the strip.
He was amazing - moved like a machine.
His dog was kind of a bore though.

Great food, music and entertainment at the Jimmy Buffet restaurant.
The crab cakes were the best I've ever had!

We must constantly look at the world in new ways...

"Friendship is unnecessary,
like philosophy, like art . . .
It has no survival value;
rather it is one of those things
that give value to survival."
Jack Lewis (1898-1963) British writer

Aaliyah and my Christmas cactus

Taking pictures with a digital camera has it's drawbacks...
the timing for one, not easy when your subject can't hold their pose.
Aaliyah is making very pretty sounds on my piano,
it takes a lot of concentration and a little tongue.
This is what you get when you tell a 3 year old to smile.
This is the cactus that Lillian gave me. Lillian is
Aailyah's great grandma, however, Aailyah seems
to be a little confused about that. She thinks her
Grandma Linda is Lillian and that Lillian is Linda.

Oh, maybe it is confusing .

Lillian and her conspiring daughter Linda
were very sneaky about giving me this plant.
They even had me unknowingly pick out
the pot it's planted in.
I told Lillian I always wanted a Christmas cactus and she
took what I said to heart, snipped pieces of
her plant, soaked them in water for a few
months, then potted it and gave it to me for my birthday.

I've had the cactus for a about 4 months now.
It's a big responsibility...

We'll get an update of Aailyah and my cactus at Christmas time!

Healing flowers

When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it,

it's your world for the moment.

I want to give that world to someone else.

Most people in the city rush around so,

they have no time to look at a flower.

I want them to see it
whether they want to or not.

Georgia O'Keeffe

Let us open our leaves like a flower, and be passive and receptive. - John Keats

With a few flowers in my garden,
half a dozen pictures and some books,
I live without envy. - Lope de Vega

The Earth Laughs in Flowers- Ralph Waldo Emerson

This and That

Resume'

by Dorothy Parker
Razors pain you; Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you; And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren't lawful; Nooses give;
Gas smells awful; You might as well live.

Don't worry, there is no hidden message here... I just like the wit of the poet Dorothy Parker.

The people who decide what signs to place on the road have no direct contact with me. However, I was not doing just that, as I passed a sign, going 72 mph that stated in big, bold letters to "Concentrate on your driving"

Not really concentrating on anything in particular - I could have been retrieving a message off my cell phone, looking through a stack of cd's piled on the seat next to me, watching a fly buzz and bang against the window, clouds in the sky. Any number of things might keep me from ever really concentrating on my driving. In fact, I never give driving a second thought when I'm behind the wheel. Even the sign itself proved to be a distraction as I thought about it for miles and miles wondering if any of the people passing me were concentrating on their driving. I watched people. My guess is no one is.

Turn the key, hit the gas and do everything but take a nap between driveway and destination. That's my approach. A scene from a movie comes to mind. The camera pans around a car as a family travels through the night to reach their vacation destination. Kids and dog are sleeping propped up against each other in the back seat, mom is leaning comfortably on a pillow tucked up between the seat and the window in the front seat, sound asleep. Then on to the dad, Chevy Chase, is behind the wheel, head laid straight back, mouth open and snoring evenly. This scene doesn't end well- screaming if I remember right.

I worked with an older lady many years ago who never married and never had children. She was always bringing pictures of her dogs to us. I thought she was nuts. Dogs in little hats and sweaters that we oohed and aahed over to be polite. Now I'm fascinated myself by Zoey, Jack and Tiffany. They are in a little training session and focused on receiving their treat. Maybe she wasn't nuts.