I was in Utah and California for the past ten days, and didn't want to write anything about it here because I didn't want to post on the Internet that the house would be empty (new protocol). You can never tell... maybe the Wet Bandits from Home Alone are reading my blogs...
It was fun! I saw my son Ethan and his wife Sarah (pictured) graduate from college, specifically, Utah Valley University (UVU). I haven't had a chance to wade through the photos I took to create a photo album of the trip yet, but here's a ten minute graduation video.
The other occasion was to see my son-in-law Chris graduate from the University of Utah and become commissioned in the U.S. Army. I'm very proud of him, too! I didn't take any videos of that, just photos, and I'll have those up later this week as well. I brought my venerable 2001 vintage analog High 8mm camcorder, but dropped it in the airport and now it's kaput. Time to upgrade to digital!
I also took a side trip to Burbank to fool around with my pal Mike... again, photos coming. When I arrived in Los Angeles I drove first to the Silver Lake neighborhood where I spent my early childhood, up to age nine. It being a Sunday, I was pleased to hear the bells in the Russian Orthodox Church up Robinson street greet me, like an old friend. Two minute video here. I remember the distinctive sound of these bells very well from my childhood - to this day I love Russian classical music: Rimsky-Korsakov, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Stravinsky. It's probably due to the sound of these bells and the masses sung in Slavonic coming from this church. It was very nice that I happened to be roaming around in my old neighborhood when mass started; on invitation, I stopped in to hear the mass being sung. Lovely!
I also took some videos of the view from the 18th floor of the Holiday Inn tower in Burbank for my Burbankia website. (3 1/2 minute video here.) They have glass elevators going up and down the side of the building, and I took some views in that as well.
I have a TON of photographic work to do...
It sucks that my kids all live across the country. Leaving them is hard. But I'll see Meredith in July when she visits for a week, and Ethan says he plans to attend his high school reunion in August. Julie and her husband may visit for Christmas - and Meredith and her newly-minted Second Lieutenant husband will be getting deployed elsewhere (Georgia and probably Missouri) later this year and next. And, of course, there is new grandson Clark to be born next month; Cari will visit for that. Lots going on.
That's it for today. Time to open up Photoshop and get to work.
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