I have SO many beautiful pictures to post, and at some point, I will put them on a Kodak Share Gallery or something, but in the meantime, I'll write what I can.
Let's see there's the pre-wedding and post-wedding. I LOVED seeing so many of you during the week of Jacques and Liz's wedding (www.jacquesandelizabeth.com). The wedding was AMAZING and such a fitting and beautiful event for two incredible people. I am in love with my family, straight out... Haha! Each time we get together we have more and more fun. Over Thanksgiving, the sibs are going to a G-Love and Blackalicious concert in Boston... Good times! And now I have two sisters!!! Andre's girlfriend Hannah was also at the wedding, and she fit in fabulously with all of us.
The week in DC was definitely a much needed break from the tour, but I can't really say it was restful... my fault really... After the wedding, I slept about an hour before having to meet the SuperShuttle at 5:20am and head to Dulles airport where I proceeded to fly all day to Seattle. Nothing like a few hours of dozing on a plane, only to have to drive across Washington state to Spokane to begin another week. Needless to say, I was kind of sick last week, but now I'm almost back to normal, and over the jetlag.
PRE-WEDDING: Wow, I'm way behind in the updates, but call me for more details... I love phone calls from faraway friends :-) Hint, Hint.. Anyways, October was a challenging, yet exciting month. Nick and I spent a week on an Indian reservation where the kids had NO discipline, yet pulled off the show. We were showered with gifts at the end of the week: "Native Pride" sweatshirts, snacks for the next week, and beautiful wind chimes! The next week, we found ourselves in Hispanic Washington, where 95% of the students spoke Spanish as their first language. Beautiful vineyards surrounded the town, and I felt like we were in California at times. Of course the week wasn't complete without a tour of these vineyards, wine-tasting, and cows running away! Our drive from the reservation to Granger (the Hispanic farm town) was GORGEOUS... the #1 drive we've had yet! Pictures to come...
The final week before the wedding was spent in a small suberb of Seattle. I stayed with an awesome family... The mother, Lynn, and I were both Virgos and talked non-stop late into the evenings, accompanied by episodes of "Will & Grace" and "Sex & the City". She had kids in 6th & 8th grade, so it was fun to be in a busy house with children for a change... Till then, I had mostly been staying with empty-nesters or in hotels. We saw the sights of Seattle (Space Needle, Pike Street Market, etc.), I have an embarrassing story about parking, and then I was on my way to the wedding....
POST-WEDDING: Last week was spent 20 miles outside of Spokane, a town called Deer Park. Our homestay was fabulous. Gus, the school's custodian, waited on us hand & foot, always making sure we had more than enough to eat and drink. His music (light rock from the 70s & 80s) and TV favorite (THe Price is Right, every morning) will remain unforgettable. He was such an outgoing, fun personality, and made a week where I was feeling sick work out.
And this week, I find myself in an even smaller farming town. CRAZY COINCIDENCE: my homestay's daughter went to Brown University and was roommates with Liza Beth Marshall from Bristol! Yet again, small, small world! Nancy and Mark are very cool people--- Mark's a farmer and Nancy a school librarian and art teacher. They are an NPR family and their magazine collection reminds me of Mom & Dad. (New Yorker, Smithsonian)
That's the news from out west, and oh yea, my SPRING TOUR will be in Montana & Wyoming. Cold, but I'll get much, much use out of my cowboy hat!
