I finally posted about it

I finally posted about our Moab/southeast Utah trip. It's a pretty extensive photo collection, and can be found here: http://beattytown.blogspot.com/2008/07/following-trail-of-ancients.html

I know some of you would've found it anyway, but I just wanted to make a post here!

another fun night

sorry i keep posting so much guys, but there is just too much fun stuff going on! and i have to write it here or i'm scared i will forget, sometime far in the future, the ins and outs of my summer days, 2008. so here we go again. last night i had the pleasure of going out dancing at the sequoia house with darin, debby and her boyfriend matthew and christy and her boyfriend mike, who is the twin brother of matthew. it was quite a group. the band was called "aftershock" which tells you all you need to know probably about the music. we had a really good time, i'm sure darin and i paid for nothing all night, matthew and mike are such gentlemen and so generous and fun loving. and i even got a free teeshirt that says "get fresh, taste nature" on it from the finlandia vodka marketing girl.

we all drove over to poor red's afterwards and saw our friend scott sowa bartending and later joey and emily and stan all came to pick us up and we came home and had green screen fun! darin and stan made a green screen in the music room which means we can film stuff like me flying over rooftops. it is pretty cool. we made the dorkiest music videos at like two in the morning. one is about boots, yes, like cowboy boots. you have to see it to believe it.

anyway i just thought you all might enjoy the photos since we all know and love debby and she has had a rough couple of years and it is so good to see her happy and healthy!

debby and matthew:

hitting the dance floor. these folks LOVE to dance!debby would drag everyone out there to dance up a storm!here's darin with his ladies:my hubby is FINE:
christy and mike:poor red's:

Old photos anyone?

Hiya,
just up on a Saturday, wondering which one of you has the old photo albs? You know the big old full ones from the 70's and early 80's? I gots a hankerin to see some of our young Beatty family and put some into a set online, perhaps Flickr?

Maybe I could vizt Placerville tomorrow? (My CV joints and breaks got fixed!)
Anyone know where the boxes of photos are? This is a huge job, making those things digital, but someone's got to do it. I am a willing volunteer.

Also, I miss you all terrible.
Matt and Amy, I CAN'T TELL YOU how sad it makes me that I still've not visited Utah to see you. Ever. So, just so you know, I will be hopping a train there soon, maybe Falltime.

Love,
adie

mountain ghost town

we spent a day in bodie to meet up with martin and film some stuff for the musical movie darin and joey and emily are making. stan woke us up at five in the morning and we were on the road by six. rare in a beatty situation. i had gone to bed at four. so it was kinda delirious but super fun, driving through the gorgeous sierra nevadas as the sun came up. we stopped at a little lodge to buy snacks and drinks from a sexy lady with a long gypsy skirt who flirted with our boys. the mountains looked inviting enough to run away from life for awhile and just trek out into the wilderness...through the wildflowers and ponderosa pines and indian paintbrush and quaking aspens...speaking of which, emily counted how many times i said "quaking aspen" because it is my new favorite tree which i mention annoyingly often.

so as we pull into the tiny twon of bridgeport at 8:30 in the morning, who is the first person we see ambling down the sidewalk? MARTIN. fresh off the trail, full of fun stories about his adventures, getting rid of his tent to shed weight in his pack, only to hitchhike back to tahoe to buy a new one because it started raining! and the new one is heavier! hanging out with the french gals who work in bridgeport, meeting locals and foreigners at the bar rhino's and watching a swede mock the french girls' accents (?) and staying a night at the haunted old victorian inn. making friends with people from all around the world. joey oohed and ahhed over martin, his stubble, his sunburnt nose, his smell. it was like young love. it took about another half hour or so to drive to bodie. the road is long and bumpy but it was so well worth it. what an amazing little ghosty scene they shot up there in the ruins of that once-bustling town. it is so strange to see the things left behind, to feel the stories in the wind and stand among broken buildings that held life and anger and love long ago. the scene they were shooting was a fight scene, so there were a lot of long sad lingering gazes. but meanwhile it was just fun to be out there, amidst all that sky and old stuff.

darin being director. he thrives on this. saying good-bye to stan and martin as they embark on the next part of the pacific crest trail, sonora pass through yosemite. it started raining and we had to drop them off on the side of the road and let them hitchhike because we were running out of time to get back. we were all super jealous, it looked so fun to just be setting out, heading into the woods and mountains, with only your little microhome on your back. come one, come all, come to bodie. these mountains are full of mischief, spirits, and wonder.

saturday july 19

Two feather trading post, Coloma California. sharing ringpop with local kitty:

darin's favorite:
joey's favorite:
mattie's favorite:
graveyard gallivanting:
jarom's favorite: unknown graves:

swimming at my house:

watching the "special futures" of ice age with sylvan at nana's:

nana's mac n cheese dinner:

walking downtown to see los webelos at PLA:meeting up with papa:the couples!

Gear list

Here's a list of stuff I think we need. Please leave a comment to add anything that I missed, and I'll edit this list to include it. Righteous.

------------
-Essentials-
------------
backpack (obviously)
tent
sleeping/mummy bag, blankets will probably do just fine since it'll be so hot
water bottles: SIGG, Nalgene, canteen, whatever
stove + fuel (Dad, Joey and Matt have)
water purifier (Dad, Joey and Matt have)
mess kit + cup/mug
utensils
biodegradable soap (I like Dr. Bronners, because you can use it as soap, toothpaste, detergent, shampoo, etc.)
waterproof matches or lighter
good sunscreen
insect repellent
flashlight(s) -- LED flashlights are light and powerful
spare batteries for flashlight
bathroom essentials: toothbrush/paste, soap, contacts + solution, hair-ties, vaseline, spare contacts, etc.
biodegradable toilet paper (apparently there's a lack of it in the facilities)
first aid kit (I know Joey has one, anyone else?)
[contents of first aid kit: bandaids (including waterproof), butterfly bandage, ace bandage, waterproof tape, acetaminophen/ibuprofen/aspirin, snake bite kit -- there's a good list here]


----------
-Optional-
----------
camera + a good case + spare battery
disposable camera (just in case)
lotion (apparently we'll need it)
compass
poncho (black garbage bag or two would suffice--rains expected!)
CamelBak or water bladder
watch
rope
mirror
knife/pocketknife
dish scrubber
ziploc/plastic bags (good for camera protection and storing/carrying little items)
maps and field guides
carabiners to secure stuff to your pack
backpacking towel
sleeping mat
headlamp
rain cover for your pack
rain poncho


----------
-Clothing-
----------
I don't know girls' clothing that well, so this is what I'm bringing:
sunglasses
swimsuit
2 pairs shorts
2 t-shirts
maybe 1 long-sleeved shirt, but I'm not sure yet
maybe 1 pair of pajama-y pants or something, also not sure on this one
underwear
hat
sweatbands (if you're me--yes)
good shoes or foot coverings of some kind, at least two pair: for water and/or hiking (I'm just bringing Chacos and flipflops)
socks (if bringing shoes/boots)


------
-Food-
------
For food, lots of lightweight, filling stuff. We won't want to bring canned foods. Boxed foods are a great idea, stuff like rice-a-roni and couscous--you just take the package out of the box and save the heating directions.

We should all cover our own food entirely, but also bring maybe one or two things to share--for example I'll bring a decent dose of my favorite homemade mix that can go around.

On the first day it will probably be possible to bring certain things that won't go bad instantly. Things like:
carrots
potatoes
apples
bananas
sandwiches (like peanut butter or cold grilled cheese or something)

coffee
tea
oats
freeze-dried beans
quinoa
couscous
split peas for soup
rice-a-roni
rice (minute rice is lighter, but takes up more volume; "real" rice is heavier but low volume so you can bring a ton of it)
top ramen (eat at your own risk)
macaroni and cheese (if you so choose)
granola
granola/food bars
trail mix/gorp
dried fruit
dried bananas -- get them in bulk: strange texture, but very light, filling, and nutritious
salt/pepper
a little sugar/brown sugar (for oatmeal especially)

(There's a ton of food I haven't listed. Please suggest!)

Farewell Jerry Okumura

The memorial for Jerry Okumura happened Saturday night at Finnon Lake in Swansboro. Those of us who were there knew how lucky we were to be part of such a special ceremony. We all know what a great family the Okumuras are and this night just brought us all closer together, as friends, family, human beings on earth.

I have learned that to be together with friends and loved ones when someone dies is vital. I was amazed but not surprised by the amount of people who stood up to talk about Jerry and all the different perspectives on his life. There were hundreds of people gathered together to celebrate the life of a man who was generous, strong, wise and loving. Hearing his wife, Jan, such a dear and kind person, speak with a voice rich with love and sadness, was so heartbreaking. And then to see Stan, who we all know and love, humbly leading the ceremony with the voice of an adult and a kid at once, a voice full of emotion and gratitude, was a blessing. To see him and his friends, who have been family to him all his life, dealing with this loss together, with tears, hugs, and genuine pure affection for each other. The things Joey said, so bravely in front of everyone, were said with a poet's soul and sweet love. To have that kind of love so present is a humbling and awesome experience. It brings our families together so that we share joy and sorrow, as a community. And to see a life so respected, so honored and cherished, reminded me of the fragility of our short years on earth and the importance of all the connections we make here, the way that love generated outlasts everything temporal and shines in the sun on a lake where geese fly and dragonflies dance.

I am grateful to be part of Stan's life and to have attended this memorial and to have heard these stories and cried these tears and hugged those around me. and I am grateful to a night that seemed to never end, to riding with about twelve other people in the back of Martin's truck in the middle of the Swansboro darkness down bumpy rustic roads, jostling in the truckbed and several more friends up front, singing at the top of our lungs and then unloading at the pond where we all went nightswimming in the warm mossy water. I am grateful to sweet kaitlyn with loss in her eyes and endless stories. I am grateful to singing "case of you" with emily before we went to sleep, while joey played guitar, everyone together in the darkness. i am grateful to sleeping outside on the dirt in a sleeping bag next to darin and waking up in the cool morning, before the sun to the busy sounds of birds and mosquitos and roosters. all our friends quietly breathing and sleeping around us on the ground and in tents. i am glad to have driven home so slowly and carefully at six in the morning as the hot july sun came up slowly over the hills, down the switchbacks, across the river, over that rickety bridge, past vineyards and barns and wildflowers, listening to music together and thinking and dreaming and being glad to be alive.

Heartbreak

My little whiskey has gone missing. We left him for 48 hours and he is no where to be found. I feel like I can hear him crying somewhere. Just like he would when we would put him outside just to let him in again.The same way when I found him crying in the street I couldn't stand to hear his little sad cry. Even when Matt would try to leave to work it would want to go with him. It was very dangerous to leave our street. He would follow us to the car and then hide under it and it would take us some time to get him out and put him back in his bed, but he was quick. You really had to keep on eye on him. He was just a baby and always wanted to be with the family. I think thats why he left in the end. He just wanted some love and comfort and it breaks my heart that we left him.


The sweetest kitty ever. He was so fun and playful.

Kids loving him. Bella said she liked him because when you pet him he would go purr.

Kill us. We want him back.

We got home last night at 12 and didn't see him waiting for us in his little hide out under the jogger we got worried and the kids started searching. We went to bed a lot later then we wanted with no luck. We put a little food out and it was gone this morning so the kids went and knocked on a few doors. The house next door said they never saw him when they came over to make sure he had food and water and a couple houses down said they heard him crying out their window and try to keep it in their back yard but thats all we know for now.

for the kids

july 4-5 in pville

On the fourth of July we had a little barbecue at mom's: veggie dogs, corn on the cob, fruit salad, baked beans, and peach pie! It was quite a feast. Here is momma cooking in her kitchen.
And pops firing up the special barbecue called a kamado.

The kids getting cozy with some on-demand cable.I look sorta like a 50s hostess with my weird plate full of weiners and unstable look on my face. spreading the love.mikie just being mikie!
then the next day was rebecca's birthday. we had a little party at her house and then we all headed over to the cozmic cafe for the show darin was playing in. here is the lovely birthday girl with part of her present from mom, lavendar soap. she loved mom's gift so much, it was a red glass star that holds a candle and hangs decoratively. and i gave her a clay fired butterfly bell/chime.
cute ladies at the bar. it is a very rare occurrence for carolann to order a beer, so this was a proud moment.

candice was a big part of the night's festivities.

it was a wild night.