Photos from the Planet

Here are some pictures from Planet Wedding:

The rehearsal at the Rose Garden in Descanso Gardens

One of the tables at the rehearsal dinner at the Athenaeum (clockwise from bottom: Mark Saffman, Nadine Saffman, Gregory Wannier, Nancy Hansmann, Doug Hansmann, Peter Wannier, Kate Wannier, Lenora Wannier, Rich)

Charles Perrin, Rae's cousin, checking out the zip line over the pool

Dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen - Left side of table: Brian, Megan Sego, Nancy Hansmann, Elaine, Madeline Sego, Kathy Quemore, Right side of table: Dan Sego, Chris Quemore, Rich, Doug Hansmann. Lauren Sego is taking the picture.

Jennifer Hawkins, Sarah, Rae, Jenny Wannier, Polly Petkova

Morgan Harris, Alec Turnbull, Jesse, Ryan Bemrose, Michael De Angelo

Jesse escorting Rae to the dance floor, mind the dress

Rich sharing a dance with Sarah

Planet Wedding - There and Back again, June 16-20, 2011

Planet Wedding, June 16-20, 2011

On Thursday, June 16, Rich, Sarah and I drove to Pasadena, California and checked into the Westin, our base on the planet. In the evening we joined the buffet at Louise Wannier (Rae's mother) and Michael Burns (Rae's stepfather) house, almost across the street from Cal Tech. We were joined by Rich's cousin Alyce, her husband Michael Mazzoni and their daughter Amanda's boyfriend, Michael Ryder (no, not the Boston Bruin hockey player) as well as my cousin Bari and her husband Bob Stanley (no, not of the Stanley cup). Others attending included Peter and Lenore Wannier (Rae's father and stepmother), their daughter Kate (Rae's half-sister), Jenny Wannier, Gregory Wannier, Timothy Wannier, Kelly Roberts (Rae's twin sister, older brother, oldest brother and girlfriend respectively), Ruth Saffman (Rae's grandmother, Louise's mother), plus …… It was a fun opportunity to catch-up and meet some of Rae's family we had not met before.

 

Friday morning we joined Chris and Kathy Quemore for a walk around the old section of downtown Pasadena with a stop for lunch. In the afternoon Rich and I stopped by Flintridge Bookstore and Coffee House (www.flintridgebooks.com), owned and operated by Peter and Lenore. Rich and I always love browsing through bookstores and this was no exception. The bookstore also has an Espresso Book Machine that prints, collates, covers and binds a single book in a few minutes. The machine allows readers to obtain any book title, even books that are out of print or print from a PDF file, then prints, binds and trims the reader's selection as a paperback book. We missed watching it operate but we did some examples and we are considering having the website from our previous cruising printed in paperback form.

 

The next activity for Friday was the rehearsal at the Rose Garden in Descanso Gardens (www.descansogardens.org), a short distance from the bookstore. The property where the gardens are located were once claimed for the King of Spain in 1769. The Rose Garden is the site for Jesse and Rae's wedding and the reception will be at the Rose Pavilion adjoining. This is a very popular place and we had to wait for a previous wedding to finish before we could do our rehearsal. We had a chance to practice walking to our places and walking out.

 

In the evening, Rich and I hosted the rehearsal dinner in the Card Room at the Athenaeum (http://athenaeum.caltech.edu/ ) on the Cal Tech campus. The Athenaeum was built in 1930 and the first formal dinner was held in February 1931 and Albert Einstein was one of the guests of honor. It definitely has a wonderful atmosphere. Our 32 guests included the bridal party (4 bridesmaids, 3 of 4 groomsmen, bride and groom, 3 sets of parents of the bride and groom, 2 flower girls) and immediate family, grandmother and a few out of town relatives and guests. The maître de played a chime signaling for everyone to sit down and dinner was served shortly. We were spread across 3 tables, the bride and groom circulated and shared 1 course of the dinner with each table. The food was excellent and everyone seemed to have a good time.

 

Saturday we all converged at Peter and Lenore's house for brunch from 10:30am to 3:00pm. They have a swimming pool in the backyard with a zip line going across it. Since many of the groomsmen and bridesmaids and their significant others as well as Jesse and Rae were staying here, the pool was a busy place. Us 'old folks' watched and enjoyed conversation. The bride and bridesmaids took time out to get manicures.

 

In the evening there was lots of activity. The bachelorette party was a mystery dinner. The bachelor party included a Korean barbeque and other activities I don't want to think about. A group of us had dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen. This included the Segos (Dan, Madeline, Lauren, Megan and Brian), the Hansmanns and the Quemores. After dinner we adjourned to Living Room (aka Westin Hotel bar). We were joined by my cousins Bari and Bob Stanley, Pam Ratner and Joy Johnson. Joy started us on drinking Manhattans and you can imagine where it went from there.

 

Sunday was the big day. Rich dropped me off at Louise's house where the bride had stayed the night and she was joined by the bridesmaids. They were taking turns getting their hair done and then their makeup. Nadine, Rae's cousin, who is training to be a skin specialist in Copenhagen (yes she is fluent in English and Danish) was nice enough to do my makeup as well. Sarah and Nadine did my hair. Rich picked me up around 1pm, then we picked up Timothy (Rae's oldest brother) along with Morgan Harris (Jesse's friend since he was 3 years old), and Alec Turnbull (Morgan, Alec and Jesse were in middle school together). After dressing Rich dropped me off at Descanso gardens so I could help the bride and bridesmaids get ready. There were only two minor crises – the veil was left at Louise's house and had to be retrieved (no problem, plenty of time), the guest books were misplaced and substitutes were obtained.

 

Once everyone was dressed and assembled it was time for pictures with the bride and her family. I volunteered to help organize getting the right folks in each picture with a lot of help from Gregory. Amazingly enough we got through all fifteen permutations. The bride was in good spirits even though she was briefly entangled in a low tree branch and was quickly rescued by her trusty bridesmaids. The bride was hustled off so she would not be seen by the groom. After combination of photographs of the groom, family and groomsmen there was time to relax before the guests arrived.

 

At 5:45pm, the guests were seated, the harpist was playing and the ceremony began. The bride was radiant as she was escorted by her father up the aisle. Jesse looked calm and cool in his tuxedo as he stepped down to meet them. Doug Hansmann did a great job officiating. Rae and Jesse repeated their vows. A few of us were getting a little teary eyed.

 

After the ceremony there were more photographs with the bride, groom, bridal party and families.

 

And then… the reception! The harpist was replaced by a jazz quartet. The dance floor opened and the party began. Unbeknownst to Rich and me, Rae and Jesse had taken dance lessons in Portland a few weeks prior. Jesse was the king of the dance floor putting many to shame. Everyone remarked on it. At one point, the band struck up Hava Nagilla, Rae and Jesse were hoisted up on chairs and we danced circles around them. Both of them clung to their chairs hoping to survive without being dumped on the floor. But survive they did and we all had a good time.

After the cake cutting, bouquet tossing (caught by a flower girl) and garter tossing (caught by Jeryl), it was time for the happy couple to depart. Peter has a vintage Model T which he used to drive the newlyweds to their hotel. Rae and Jesse sat in the rumple seat complete with a 'Just Married' sign on the back. As the Model T did not have dashboard lights, Peter had to use a flashlight to see the speedometer. Upon arriving at the hotel and extricating the pair, Peter was approached by a woman in front of the hotel asking if he would drive her son and his future bride for their wedding in September. Peter graciously declined.

 

Monday morning we picked up Sarah and then the newlyweds. After a quick stop to drop off the wedding dress at Louise's we drove to LAX and dropped Jesse and Rae at the airport.

 

Rich, Sarah and I departed Planet Wedding and drove back to Windarra at Emeryville. It was a weekend to remember and we want to thank everyone who was able to attend for helping us celebrate.

 

By the way, Jesse and Rae have a website on the wedding. Check this in the future for more photos from the wedding (https://sites.google.com/site/wannierjablonskiwedding2011/).

Sarah Graduates!

On Friday, May 20, 2011, Rich and I left Emeryville and drove up to Portland, Oregon via an overnight stop at Medford. On Sunday, we spent some time with Jesse walking about downtown Portland.

Sunday evening, Doug and Nancy Hansmann joined Rich, Jesse, Sarah and I at Papa Hadyn's for a celebratory dinner. Rae was flying back from Montreal for a Bar Mitzvah so she missed the laughter and jocularity that always accompanies a meal when we get together with Doug and Nancy. The meal was excellent and the desserts afterwards were sinful but we all enjoyed every minute and morsel of it.

Monday was Graduation day. We gathered for breakfast at Gray's center. Jesse and Rae joined us and we got our seats for the ceremony. As this was the 97^th commencement of Reed College they are practiced with Pacific Northwest weather and all of the ceremony was under a large white tent so everyone was shielded from the intermittent rain. Colin Diver, the president of Reed College, gave the introduction and Pamela M.J. Cox '75, vice president of the World Bank for the Latin America and Caribbean region, gave the address. Following the speeches, the graduates received their diplomas, according to department. Sarah received a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry from the department of Mathematics and Natual Sciences.

Several students present Colin Diver with a memento when receiving their diploma. One student gave him a mounted deer's head. We are still not sure what this was signifying. Others presented him with posters, leis, a bottle of vodka, etc. There are two assistants at the graduation that are there just to collect these items. When Sarah received her acceptance letter to Reed in December, 2005, the envelope was contained not only the letter but was filled with confetti. She saved that confetti and when she accepted her diploma, she asked Mr Diver to bend over and she sprinkled a handful of this same confetti over his head. Below is a video clip that Doug took of this event.

After all of the graduates received their diplomas and to the standing ovation of the parents and friends, the recessional proceeded out the tent and the sun began to shine, at least briefly. The faculty lined the pathway and clapped as the graduates walked by. We were able to get a few pictures of Sarah before she went off to congratulate friends and we adjourned to the nibbles and champagne tent.

We are proud of Sarah and her accomplishment. She is not sure where her next path will take her but we are looking forward to her joining us on Windarra for at least part of the summer.

Celebrating and Wine Tasting in Napa

On April 29, our friends, Dan and Madeline Sego, flew down to visit us for a long weekend. On Saturday morning we drove out to Napa to check out the winery scene.

Our first stop was a tasting at Mumm's (http://www.mummnapa.com/). The weather was sunny and warm so we sat outside on the patio, sipping 3 samples of bubbly and nibbling on nuts, dried fruits and crackers while looking over the vineyards.

Our next stop was Silver Oak Winery, where life is a Cabernet, near Rutherford (http://www.silveroak.com/ ). I played designated driver while Rich, Dan and Madeline tasted various red wines. We watched minibuses and limousines deliver and pickup groups for wine tasting and posing next to the statues on the grounds near the tasting room.

This strenuous activity required a late afternoon nap at the hotel and an even later dinner in downtown Napa.

Sunday morning we drove to Castello di Amorosa winery (http://www.castellodiamorosa.com/). The castle is 14^th century Tuscan style with 107 rooms and winery. There is even a small chapel, Saint Catherine of Siena, where they have Latin Mass on Sunday morning at 8:30am. (We passed on this experience) The winery specializes in Italian style wines. After a self-guided tour of the castle we went to the tasting room. Dan and Madeline selected wines for a case to be sent back to Seattle, plus 2 bottles and we were ready for our picnic.

We drove across to Rutherford Hill Winery and a small picnic area with a beautiful view of the Napa Valley. Wine, cheese, salami, fruit, bruschetta, bread and crackers made up the picnic as we celebrated both Dan and Madeline's anniversary (30 years and growing strong) and Rich's birthday (65 years and growing stronger). Cheers!

Monday morning we drove through San Francisco for a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge and back. Unfortunately the clouds and wind were coming in and it was a might chilly. We had lunch in Sausalito to recover those calories we lost during the walk!

In the afternoon we dropped the Segos at Oakland Airport for their flight back to Seattle.

Friday, May 6, was our 27th anniversay. To celebrate we drove to Carmel for lunch and some sightseeing. After lunch at Merlot's, we took the 17-mile drive around the Pebble Beach area. The views were gorgeous. We continued to Monterey and checked out the marina as it has been 10 years since we were here last. We plan to stop here again some time this summer on our way south.

Sea and Ski some more

On Thursday, April 14th, we went to the Strictly Sail Pacific boat show at Jack London Square in Oakland. The real reason we went was to listen to Larry Jacobson's talk. Larry talked about his circumnavigation aka around the world in 2070 days. It was also an opportunity to show off his book, The Boy Behind the Gate, about the trip. In addition to the talk we walked around the show and made a few purchases, such as cup holders that fit on the top of our winches in the cockput and a counterpoise for our single side band radio. Since the next America's Cup will be held in San Francisco Bay, they had the actual America's Cup on display, guarded by two gentlemen, in black suits, white shirts, dark ties, with little earphones similar to what the Secret Service wear (at least in movies). Rich and I each posed beside the Cup and we took pictures. The MIB's did not smile.

Friday afternoon, Pete and Sue, of SV Kiapa, picked us up and we drove to their cabin at Bear Valley. There is so much snow we had to ride on snowmobiles to get to the cabin. It was a fun experience to ride through the snow in the light of the full moon.

Saturday morning we drove to the village, again on snowmobile so Rich and I could rent ski equipment before taking the bus up to the ski area. The skies were clear, the sun was out and it was warm. Pete wore shorts and a Giants shirt for snowboarding. Rich was in long underwear and shorts. I was in fleece pants and jacket and way too over dressed and hot! Sue led us over various runs on the front and back sides of the ski area. Spring skiing, plenty of sun, nice, deep snow, you can't beat it.

In the afternoon they had pond skimming which was fun to watch. At the bottom of a long steep straightaway, they built a long pond about 15 yards long by 5 yards wide, 3 feet deep. The idea is to come down the hill with enough speed that you can skim across the water and continue skiing off the other side. Some made it and some did not with quite a splash. Many contestants dress up. We watched Gumby, a banana, a hot dog with separate ketchup, a cheerleader and other modes of fashion attempt to skim the pond. It was all in great fun.

On Sunday, we enjoyed a wonderful breakfast that Sue made for us. The highlight was Grand Marnier infused French Toast with Frambois Coulis. It was delicious! After reading and relaxing for a while, Rich and I walked to the village and back to get some exercise and some fresh air. The walk back was all uphill and the sun was bright so we would walk from one shady spot and rested then continue walking to the next spot. This morning we were up early for the snowmobile ride back to the car. The weather prediction was for rain and we were prepared for a wet ride. Instead we rode through the lightly falling snow.

It was a picture perfect weekend with fantastic hosts. Thank you Pete and Sue for the great weekend.

Sea to Snow and back again

Two weeks ago we got an invitation to join Rae's family skiing up at Alpine Meadows near Lake Tahoe. Peter and Lenora, Rae's father and stepmother made reservation last year to stay 3/20-24, at the Stanford Alpine Chalet, of which he is an alumni. Unfortunately, Timothy, Rae's oldest brother, cancelled at the last minute so there was an extra room and would we like to join them. Rich and I thought, sure why not, but we only had our ski jackets but no other ski stuff. Rae said, no problem, she would bring family extras. So on Monday, 3/21, we packed up the Subaru and headed east on I-80. Even though there was snow on the highway, the mighty Subaru got us there with no trouble and we did not have to put on chains. That evening we joined Peter, Lenora, Katie (Rae's stepsister), Jenny (Rae's twin sister) and Rae for dinner at the Chalet. We also went through some of the ski gear that Rae had brought and selected some items such as goggles and gloves and ski bibs. Tuesday morning after breakfast we got a shuttle ride, all of 5 minutes, to Alpine Meadows ski area. At the ski rental area, you filled out all of the necessary information for ski rentals, took the printout to the cash register, and after paying, on to the boot section and ski section respectively. The longest part of this process was putting on the boots. The snow was coming down in buckets and there was already a considerable amount on the ground already, as much as 2 feet of new snow in the past 24 hours. We rode up the Roundhouse chair with groomed slopes to get our ski legs back and then up the Summit chair to Alpine Bowl. This is usually an intermediate slope but with no grooming and a lot of new snow it was a lot more challenging. Leaning back was the order of the day. If you fell and your ski came off it could mean an ordeal trying to find your ski in the deep snow, much less standing up and putting it back on. We saw at least two people that day that were furiously digging in the snow looking for their lost ski. Unfortunately Rich forgot to take his meds in the morning and with the altitude, and the deep powder he was having difficulty catching his breath. Wisely he quit after a few runs and hung out at the lodge. I skied with Rae, Jenny and Peter but I was pooped by the end of the day.

Our car is somewhere under the snow

Peter, Elaine and Rae with Lake Tahoe in the background

Rae, Jenny and Katie

On Wednesday Rich and I passed on skiing and checked out Tahoe City - a small burg covered with snow. We picked up Lenora after her cross country ski lesson and the three of us went out to lunch.

Thursday we started to drive back to Emeryville. Unfortunately we spent 45 minutes going from one exit to the next and putting on chains only to be told that the road was closed for an indefinite period of time due to whiteout conditions. We stopped for lunch and then tried again. This time it took us only 30 minutes to go from the same first exit to the same second exit to find out that the road was still closed - proper signage would have been sooo helpful. So instead of going west we drove east to Reno and then south to Carson City, Nevada. As Highway 50 was our next planned road and it was closed partially for avalanche clearing we decided to stay the night and get an early start on Friday morning. The Best Western hotel included a casino so I told Rich that I wanted to play the slot machines after dinner. Of course he thought I was a little silly but he played along. I tried to put in my $10 to start playing the machine but it would not take it so I went to the cashier and got 10 - $1 tokens. I put in my token, pulled the handle and watched the things (tumblers?) spin around. After a few coins and no joy, I was resigned to just losing my $10 and going back to the room when, wait, wait, jackpot!!! $50 in tokens started to pour into the tray. WooHoo! I counted my tokens and put them in the tray I got from the cashier. I still had a few of my original 10 tokens left, so I continued and wait, wait, jackpot again!!! Another $50 in tokens poured out. I carefully counted them. Now I had $100 in tokens on my lap. I had 2 tokens left of my original 10 plus a few credits on the machine, in they went. No more pay outs. So I took my tokens and cashed them in. I had won enough to pay for our night at the hotel, dinner and breakfast the next morning. I was so proud of myself. I didn't do a happy dance (but I felt like it). Rich thinks I was channelling my father, getting something for nothing.

Friday we drove back to the boat, with little fanfare. It was a fun few days.

Passport Two

In previous posts I recounted my sad tale of trying to renew my passport. As the original renewal application was lost in the mail, I applied for a new passport in Seattle with a certified copy of my birth certificate on February 23.

As chance would have it, on exactly this same day, my renewal application is mysteriously delivered in Philadelphia with no record if having been scanned at any postal facility previously. A few days later the passport facility in Buffalo, NY (not sure how it made the transit from Philadelphia to Buffalo...) attempts to process the check that was enclosed. This was the same check that I stopped payment on, thinking that the application was lost. Of course, the check did not go through. The next week I receive a letter from Buffalo indicating the check could not be processed, and that I needed to remit payment, including a $25 surcharge within 30 days to avoid adverse action. After 30 days if no payment is received then repayment including interest and penalties must be sent to St. Louis, MO.

I quickly got on the phone and called the number provided and explained the situation. The person I talked to was very nice and explained that I needed to write a letter of clarification to the facility in Buffalo and send it overnight mail. She was able to verify that my new passport application submitted in Seattle was being processed. Sparing no time I crafted a letter and sent it off with overnight delivery.

Today I received my new passport from Seattle. With any luck the facility in Buffalo will return my old passport as I requested in the letter.

Some of my faith in 'the system' has been restored.

How long before we leave?