Hello from the Salton Sea

I'm out traveling the desert east of Palm Springs with Joe today.
We're just leaving the Salton Sea which is a very strange place. We
stopped at a beach covered with dead fish and bones (near the North
Shore Yacht Club), then went to Bombay Beach and explored and
abandoned home. It's been a very strange trip indeed so far but Joe
says that our next stop in Joshua Tree National Park should be a
little more nature friendly.

Gate G20

Hey everyone - taking a rest with Astro at the gate to fly back to San
Diego. Got here around 9:15, so we had plenty of time. Took 45 minutes
to get our bags checked, then took the doggies out to the snowfilled
pet area. Got through security just fine, but then found our flight
was delayed 50 minutes because of bad weather in San Diego - how
strange is that! Funny how Minneapolis has all kinds of snow and
freezing rain and life goes on unphased by it all. Not much longer to
go now!

Snow loader in LT's driveway

Here we are on Tuesday morning, getting ready to head to the airport
in Minneapolis. Our flight leaves at 11:35, but we are leaving at 5:30
because of the snow and freezing drizzle. It has not gotten above
freezing the whole time we have been here. The ground is super cold,
but some of the precipitation is warm and watery, especially near
Minneapolis, causing slick roads and treacherous travel conditions.
Weird to have to wait for the snow loader to get out of your own
driveway at 5:30 am!

Snow

Our last day on our trip and Joe and Anne decided to snowshoe up to
the top of the property. It is so beautiful up here! There is over two
feet of snow on the ground - the lightest and puffiest that I've ever
seen - even snowboarding in Utah! Good thing I have a hat! It is cold
and windy! It has just started to snow again and an eerie cloud/fog
has moved in. Installing the project picture cams today. I love it up
here, especially in the snow!

Valerie

At the Ennesser Christmas party at Joe's Dad's Sister's place. Her
name is Dawn. Almost the whole family is here and the food was
delicious! The whole time, the family dog, Valerie, was chillin in the
kitchen and did not cause any problems. He is quite possibly the
calmest and largest dog I have ever seen! I like doggies!

Cozy Orion

Getting up on Sunday and snapped this shot of Orion. He really does
not like the snow and cold weather and finds any cozy and warm spot he
can when inside. He really likes the couch and comforter at Joe's
Dad's place. You almost can't see him in there!

Christmas Story

Here I am on Saturday night hanging out at Joe's Dad's place. We are
getting in the Christmas spirit and watching holiday movies. Can you
tell which movie is playing? I had forgotten about the bunny scene in
the Christmas Story. Pink and fuzzy, but no relation to me. I like
holiday movies with family.

Neat Ice Crystals

Here I am at Anne's mom/dad's place up in her old bedroom on the top
floor. You can see cool ice crystals that have formed just to the
right of my bunny face. Beyond the window and ice crystals is Halls
Creek and some neat trees along the shore. I miss seeing neat ice
crystals.

Target Center

Here we are back in Minneapolis to pick up Joe from his week at work
at Target. Joe is staying at the Graves hotel right across the street
from the Target Center. Just got the car loaded up and heading to CPK
to get mom some Sicilian pizza and then heading to Merrillan.

New Booties

It is now Wednesday afternoon and me, Anne, and Astro have come up to
the station to help dad dig out the cars. You can see them buried in
over two feet of snow behind my ears. You can see Astro with her cute
blue waterproof coat and her new booties. She is not quite sure how to
walk in the booties yet...what a nice, yet cold day. There is no wind,
so it isn't too bad out. Time to get to work!

Chippewa River

Heading from Minneapolis to Merrillan on Tuesday afternoon. We are
outside of Eau Claire, crossing the Chippewa River as the sun is
setting. Such awesome winter sunsets here in Wisconsin! I like it
here...

New Booties for Astro

Here I am at dad's shop. You can see all the snow covering the cars -
they got almost 2 feet of snow! You can also see Astro with her new
booties on. The doggies really need them - it was -24 degrees this
morning without the wind chill.

View from the 19th floor

Here I am at our hotel, the Graves. We are on the 19th floor looking
down on the city. Pretty cool - dare I say cold! I look like a
bunny-scraper! Happy to be here where it really feels like Christmas!

Seat 4E

Here we are on Delta flight 2744 from San Diego to Minneapolis. We
just took off and I'm chillin with Astro as she is starting to fall
asleep. The hum of the airplane knocks her right out. We are also
right behind first class, we we have extra legroom!

Joe and the buddy pal are back in seat 11E. Since we got our tickets
at the last minute, we couldn't get seats by each other. I love to
travel!

San Diego airport

Here I am at the San Diego airport about to start another adventure!
We checked our bags and I am sitting here on the sidewalk with Astro,
waiting for Orion to pee. Away we go to the great white North!

Snowing in Socal?

Hey everyone - it is snowing in Rancho Cucamonga @ Victoria Gardens
mall! At least it is at the Apple store window...it is actual
sprinkling outside so it is kinda holiday-like outside. I love it when
there is precipitation in southern california. Hope my movie works...

Rainy Day

Hi everyone - it decided to rain today...we didn't think it would
actually happen! Driving out to REI for some shopping. Approaching the
Riverside interchange with Mt. Baldy in the background. Very cool day!

FaceTime!

Here I am, doing a FaceTime call with Joe as he is in Minneapolis for
work. If you zoom in, you can see my image in the small window that
shows what Joe sees on his end. You can also see neat etched glass in
the headboard behind Joe.

It is like Joe is right here in the kitchen. Very cool - we don't feel
so far away now! I like facetime!

Denny's and Xmas Shopping

Joe, Anne, and I are out on our way to go Christmas shopping and we
stopped at Denny's to eat. Overall, not the best experience...hard to
park, service was ok as far as the order went, but it was pretty
dirty. On the upside, Anne's cranberry/orange pancakes were awesome!

When we got done, I looked down and saw an angry face in Anne's plate
- kinda how Joe was feeling, so I thought I'd share it with you.
Hopefully our target shopping experience will be much better!

Sidewalk Bunny

While going through the pictures on Anne's iPhone, we found a cool
picture that we took last week in Santa Monica after the half-marathon
race. It looks like a cool bunny head and it is powder blue, one of my
favorite colors! We spied it right outside Amy and Danny's hotel.
There are very many neat things in the world all around us if we look
around for them.

Reflections on a bunny

Here I am with Joe and Anne at Starbucks on a rainy Saturday morning.
You can see my reflection in Joe's iPad as I am gazing out on the
goings-on outside. Joe got back from Minneapolis last night and we are
all catching up and trying to relax. What an awesome day!

Topiary Dragon

Another shot in Santa Monica, just outside of Starbucks. Found a neat
topiary dragon - there are actually two of them, but we could only get
one in the shot. I like dragons.

Puma man!

Here we are after the half marathon on the third street promenade.
Just got done eating at Yankee Doodles. Came upon a cool puma store -
reminds me of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 take on an old B movie,
Pumaman! Very nice out today - sunny and 70 degrees.

Santa Monica pier

Hi everyone - just got done with an awesome supper at I Cugina, an
Italian restaurant in downtown Santa Monica. Now we are down by the
pier to take some cool pictures with Joe's new camera lens. Very nice
night out! I wonder if any bunnies live here at the beach?

Race Packet Pick-up @ Zuma Beach

Here I am at Zuma Beach at the finish line for the Malibu
half-marathon. Amy and Danny are here from Chicago and we just picked
up their packets for the race. It will be really neat to run down the
PCH in the morning! It is pretty nice down here.

New Mac Book Air!

Here I am in the Apple store - this time in Palm Desert. Joe just got
the new Mac Book Air! It is so small, pretty, and fast! As you can
see, it is the perfect size for me. I love this computer!

Lifesaver

Hi everyone - here I am near the country club in riverside. Someone
has crocheted a cool cover for the crosswalk button. You can learn
more at www.mjsyarnbomb.com. Pretty cool!

Sunrise over the metal creatures

Here I an in the I-215 heading south to the Santa Rosa Plateau Reserve
with Joe and Anne to go for a long run. It is cloudy today, but the
sun is poking through for just a bit. We happened to snap this shot as
we passed the metal creature fabrication store. It is an awesome store
with all kinds of interesting creatures! if you zoom in, you may be
able to see some of them. We plan to go there someday and see about
getting a metal bunny...that would be so neat!

Bernasconi Road - Lake Perris SRA

Here I am with Astro and the Hummer on the south side of Lake Perris at the Bernasconi entrance. Anne and Astro just ran 9 miles around the lake while Joe ran with another guy named Joe from Anne's work. Joe and Joe ran 17 miles! Joe, Joe, and Anne all climbed mt. Whitney together a few years ago. What a nice day out today! Cool, cloudy, and foggy - right in the low 60's. Awesome!

Green arches

Hi everyone - the other day, we heard on the news that Riverside has the first "green" McDonald's. It is only a couple miles from our house! A construction company is actually working on the arches right now! I like McDonald's!

Squirrel

Here I am outside of LT's and Al's house in Merrillan on Sunday morning. We just got done walking the foundation trail in black river falls. Alan, Joe, and Anne's dad went with. When we got home, dad chased a squirrel up the power pole and he was sitting on the very top. We were just about to snap this picture when Alan decided to shoot a BB gun at the squirrel and it scared him down. If you look carefully, you can see him heading straight down the side of the pole just below the very top.

Asian beetle

Here I am on Saturday afternoon hanging out with Joe's dad and Terese and Joe/Anne. There are lots of Asian beetles around - grandpa says they were brought in to help control aphids. They are everywhere. If you look closely, you can see one on my arm. They look like ladybugs, but they are a little different.

Sunrise

Here I am at 7:00 am at the top of the hill. We are waiting for the septic guy that will be arriving at 7:30 to dig some holes for a perc test to design the septic system. The sun was just peeking through as we rolled up - perfect timing. Another beautiful sunrise as a fall leaf is floating to the ground just above me.

Track-hoe

Here I am on a Monday morning, Columbus Day, with Rich Halverson of Halverson Plumbing on his trackhoe. He is clearing brush to find the perfect spot for the septic tank and drain field. It is neat to see construction equipment out here cause it means we will be here permanently sooner rather than later!

Most awesome tree ever!

Here I am on the property with the most awesome tree ever! We are considering changing the house plan to save it! Awesome day here today!

Fall colors!

Hi all! Here I am at our property while we wait for the septic guy...the trees are awesome with yellows, oranges, reds, and the green of the pine trees. I love this place!

Minneapolis

Here I am at the Minneapolis airport. Our flight was 20 minutes early and the bags were waiting for us. We are on the curb, waiting for Boppers to roll up in his big, black cadilllac! I'm happy we had a good and safe trip.

Denver

Here I am at the Denver airport - not quite sure what the exhibit is behind me.

We noticed Alan, Anne's brother, has joined up on twitter - his latest post let us know he is on the way to Minneapolis to pick us up. Can't wait! We hear it is a nice day!

March Field Air Museum

Here I am at the March Field Air Museum. Joe is taking some pictures with his camera. To my left is a B-17 Bomber that Joe's grandpa, Cyril Neimic, was the navigator on in during WWII. Cyril's plane was shot down near Athens - 3 crew members died and 3 crew members lived, including Cyril, the pilot, and one of the front gunners. They were taken to Germany to a Stalag until the war ended.

To the right is an F-4 C Phantom that Anne's dad used to work on in the Air Force as a mechanic. Cool stuff! Too bad Al wasn't here today as they have more and new planes to observe. Planes are cool!

Ride Em Bunny!

Here I am on a Saturday morning. Anne and Joe are getting ready to go for a run. Joe was playing with Orion and decided to let me ride him like a horse! Orion doesn't look like he is enjoying it - he likes to dominate everything. Fun times when Joe and Anne are both home with me and the doggies.

New chair

Hi everyone - here I am, sitting in one of our two new chairs that Joe
bought a few days ago. They should be super cool in our new place!
They match our existing couch, so that is perfect. We rearranged the
furniture today and right when we got done, it rained. It was awesome!
I love weather and new chairs!

Top Model home - part II

Here is a picture of the top model house with the neighbors. You can
also see the street vendors and where the homeless people live, too.
What a crazy place to be. Joe, Anne, and I have no desire to ever
visit this place again - way too many people! We will take 14 acres in
the country any day!

Top Model house

We walked a long way down the beach and we found the house that
'America's Next Top Model' is being filmed in this cycle. How crazy is
that? It is funny how the house looks really cool on the show, but in
person, the homes next door really are quite rundown...the models are
gone now, I think. They must have destroyed the place because it is
for sale now.

Bunny tree house?

Another home along the beach. This one has a cool little elevated
space that looks like a perfect home for a bunny! I think LT would
like the purple house next door!

Venice Beach mural

More pictures in Venice Beach - cool mural painted on one of the
buildings. Can you tell where I am at?

Panel House

Here I am in Venice beach, in front a house called the 'panel house' -
Joe, Anne, and I came down to check out all the crazy things we hear
about the place and they are all true! Over the last few years, we
have read many books and magazines, and there are a lot of modern
homes in Venice beach. Before we went, we reviewed many of the houses,
thinking we may find some of them and we found this one! It is
interesting to note the differences between the picture in the book
and today. It looks like the house wasn't quite done when they took
the picture. It is cool to see it in person! I like modern homes.

Genius Bar

Here I am at the Apple store in Victoria Gardens. Joe's phone hasn't been working right, so he just got a new replacement from David at the Genius Bar. I think the same architectural firm that designed the visitor center at Teton designed the Apple stores... I like it here, too!

115 degrees & a traffic nightmare!

Here I am on I-15 between Baker and Barstow. As you can see on the dashboard, it is currently 115 degrees. We just passed the world's tallest thermometer and it said 60 degrees - the heat must have broke it!

Worse yet, when we got just outside of Las Vegas, traffic was necked down to two lanes for repaving of a few miles on the interstate. This caused traffic to stop for over an hour and a half! When we finally got to the crew of about 10 workers, they were all sitting on the K-rail taking a break! Why on earth would they be working placing asphalt of all things when it is over 110 degrees outside and more people are driving on the interstate? It seems much more appropriate to do that at night when it isn't as hot and there is less traffic...what a way end our awesome trip! The next few days are supposed to be just as hot and are going to be very hard to deal with - we will have to remember how nice it was at Jenny Lake to get us through.

Virgin River Gorge kinda

Here I am in one of the most recognizable places on our excursions - the Virgin River Gorge. I've blogged it several times in our travels. While being prepared to take a shot with the canyon and rock formations, Anne snapped this awesome picture of me! So it was taken in the Virgin River Gorge, but all you get to see is me - the bunny...rounding out our trip today driving from Provo, UT back to Riverside. Can't wait to see the doggies!

Periodic Spring, part II

Here is a close up of the neat diagram of how the spring works. Enjoy! I did