Well, Gary has been and gone. We both agree that it was a very very quick week…. Like three days long…
We both had a really good time….. I should have been keeping better track of what we did, but here are some highlights;
Brazilian restaurant, this one was Garys only request and we all really enjoyed it. Its one of those places were they bring the meat out on the sticks that they cook it on. They have 23 different kinds of meat, so Gary and Terry were in their element.
Palomar tours. We only made Gary go through two of them. The second one was the best. The night operator (Hi Jean) was there and the tour group, including Gary and Freddy, got to ride the dome as it was driven around.
Its the first Sunday tour I have been on that’s had that ride. It was really neat for Gary to be there.
I guess the most amazing thing is that he came out on to the cat walk on both tours and walked around….. Not a bad effort for a guy that claims to be a bit nervous with heights.
On the way home from Palomar, we took the Rover through Indian Flats camp ground. This is the same track that I took the Goldwing over….. I was surprised that I took the Wing over such a rough track, so were Gary and Freddy.
We went to Fry’s Electronics…… for 9 hours…. It would have been longer, but when Freddy called at 6:30pm we thought we should call it quits and head home. We are really greatful that they have a cafe in the middle, we had lunch there.
The interesting outcome of this was that general electronics goods are no cheaper here than in Australia… with the exception of computers. They are a LOT cheaper.
The telescope shop was neat. I finally got some eye cups for my binoculars.
After the scope shop, we went back to Fry’s.
Tour of Opto, it was good to show him where we work.
RV shopping. We started at 100k, but ended up spending our time looking at a 200k unit. They are amazingly high tech. Gary was depressed. RV’s are also are a LOT cheaper here……..
Goldwing shop. Lots of bits for the 1600 (mine), but not so much for the 1100 (mine Gary’s).
Bass Pro shop…. Lots to look at, but not really much there to buy in the end. One interesting experience happen there…. Gary wanted a coffee (go figure), I could not see where to buy one, but there was a lady near me that had a coffe cup in her hand, I asked her where she got it from. She did not respond (she was looking the other way when I asked). I touched her hand and she looked at me, I asked again, and she responded in the typical ‘slurred’ speech of a deaf person. She then pointed out the place she bought it. Latter that day Gary made the very profound and thought provoking statement that she was probably the only person in the shop that did not have a problem with my accent. (More to come on this topic).
CostCo. Lots of fun, Gary bought some jeans and shirts (beats doing laundry) and a few little things.
Best Buy. Like a little electronics shop. Cheap laptops. Enough said.
Wal Mart. No trip to America is complete with out a trip to a Wal Mart.
My memory is fading (already), but I think that’s about all the major activities. What memories are strong for me however is the non-activities…. The conversations while driving, over dinner and drinks late into the night and morning…. As usual there was a lot of good natured teasing going on. I had fogotten how much good friends can take the mickey out of each other and still not be offended, in fact, just the opposite happens, it builds the friendship and good memories. Trust me on this one.
Little things happen that with out Gary we would have missed, usually we are not sitting outside at midnight, when you do, the back yard is active with critters…. we saw our first raccoon, Freddy was VERY excited and a possum (man, the Yankee ones are ugly compared to the Australian ones). We also smelt the skunk, but did not see him…. Gary and I have started brain storming up a critter cam…. watch this space…….
We managed to set fire to a metal bbq, it was pretty spectacular, the flames were at least 10-12 feet high, there is soot on the wall of the house to prove it (Gary, my fingers are a lot better already).
We shuffled around the computers in the house and I think the end result is a lot better for all. Terry got Freddys desk top with a pretty good graphics card, so he can run his games now, and Freddy got Terry’s laptop so now it takes up less space on her desk and uses less power. Amy got an old laptop with a fresh build of XP and is a lot happier with that as its much faster than her old old laptop.
We also moved Terry’s computer desk out of his room into the lounge and the fish tank as well, that seems to be working well for all parties…..
So it was not just about shopping at Fry’s, we put Gary to work and did just enough to feel that the break got things done. It was just the right balance.
Anyway, all in all it was a fantastic week. Its the first real break either of us have had for some time (years). We all really enjoyed it immensely.
Thanks to Freddy for feeding the men meat, and thanks for Gary for coming and staying for so long.
