Giving Thanks in a Not so Traditional Way

This year we're thankful that it's one week before Travis arrives in Denver. We're happy so many of our family are happy and healthy. We're having a great Thanksgiving visiting family in Phoenix, and I'm extra thankful that FFM is finally sleeping again (of course just before Travis shows up...).

About a week ago FFM and I drove from Denver to Phoenix to visit my brother Q and his wife Karen. It was an easy drive, we're good road trippers and the weather and road conditions cooperated nicely. We're hoping for a similar drive home.

FFM has reunited with his best four-legged bud, Oscar, and the two are again inseparable. When FFM naps Oscar is *so* lonely he sticks his nose at the door jamb every few minutes to check to see if he's up yet, it's pretty funny. When they're both awake, well, the rest of us just stay out of their way.

Today we had a low key, nontraditional Thanksgiving dinner. On the menu: Marinated and stuffed Filets Mignon with Merlot Habenero Sauce, Potato Casserole with Two Mexican Cheeses, Brussels Sprouts with Pine Nuts and Pancetta, Cinnamon bread, and for dessert, Dulche de Leche Chocolate Mousse. It was very yummy.

Oscar didn't get any steak, it was too good to share.

Now we're watching the Broncos and we are hoping they can pull out of their current funk. Sometimes it harder than others to be a Bronco fan, but fear not, we're still faithful fans.

Jacaranda Trees

Early summer in Perth is showtime for the jacaranda trees. These members of the Catalpa family are timid and remain unnoticed for most of the year, but when the warm weather of November arrives, they burst forth with great purple plumes of flowers.

These pictures are from a street near our house in Perth that is heavily planted with jacaranda trees. At the peak of the jacarandas it is like a purple tunnel.

This is what the flowers actually look like. They look a bit like giant bluebells - sort of horn-shaped. I discovered it's tough to take good photos of the jacarandas. The purple flowers tend to blend in with the relentless cloudless blue sky that dominates this time of year, and on the rare overcast day they look sort of gray.

Happy botany- Travis

Two Hands

I know a number of Aussies who gauge the time remaining before some event by how many "sleeps" are left, and I have a work friend from the Dublin days who measures time by the number of "get-ups" that are still to be overcome before the awaited event. In either case, with ten of each left, the number now fits on two hands. Now when someone asks how many sleeps or get-ups are left for me in Perth, I can hold up my hands with the appropriate number of digits and show them "This many!". Departure is close enough to be real now, and I'm getting pretty excited!

Travis

Oh yeah Q, I'm so totally putting that on the blog

Uncle Q and Aunt Karen are busy corrupting young FFM with Guitar Hero. They rocked out to Tom Petty's American Girl this morning. I had to make a mad dash for the camera, totally blog worthy stuff. At which point Uncle Q, who never reads the blog but knows it exists, said, 'You're not putting that on the blog are you?' Oh yeah. Totally.

Four Corners

There's an interesting spot in the southwestern United States where the corners of four states all meet.

It's the only spot in the entire US where this happens so of course there's a monument there and enterprising Navajo Indians charge a small admission fee to go stand on the exact spot where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah all meet.

FFM thought this whole stop was pretty good stuff.