Wedding in Camrillo -- Part 2 -- July 13, 2024

We drove home from Camarillo on Monday. Traffic was much lighter than it had been on Saturday. One place we stopped to change drivers was San Ardo. I had driven by the sign many times but had never gone there. 

I was wondering about the name San Ardo. After we got home, I looked it up and found that the town was founded when the railroad went through and was named San Bernardo. In order to prevent people from confusing it with San Bernardino, they truncated the name. 

We stopped in front of Our Lady of Ransom Church. I had never heard of that title of Mary. It turns out that that feast was removed from the calendar after Vatican II. 

We were happy to get home. The cat is enjoying her usual napping places. 

For All You Last Minute Shoppers -- December 24, 2009

Visit Hamburgers, "Safest Place to Trade," in Los Angeles on Broadway, Eighth and Hill Streets. "Hamburger Glove orders are about the best 'eleventh hour' gifts to buy." "Have You Seen The Curtiss Flying Machine?" It is on display on the fourth floor, accompanied by an expert mechanician who can answer all questions.

From the Los Angeles Herald, 24-December-1909.

Not many people at work today.

Odds and ends about the wedding in Surprise, Arizona: 1) Surprise has very limited public transit. I saw something on the internet about an express bus to Phoenix, but I never saw a bus or a bus stop. I saw lots of golf carts on the side streets. 2) I have to write the chairman of BNSF. I kept driving across train tracks (on West Bell Road), but never saw a moving train. I did hear a train blow for the crossing (on West Bell Road) Sunday afternoon and a few times on Monday.

Wedding in Arizona #2 -- December 23, 2009

Yesterday I wrote about our trip to Arizona and the wedding.

Sunday morning we were up relatively early. We decided that Saturday afternoon mass counted for going to church. We had breakfast at the hotel.

The favors at the reception were engraved wine glasses. My mother-in-law had also brought back the centerpiece from our table. We had thought we might be able to get the glasses home in our luggage, but the centerpiece, a wine bottle surrounded by artificial branches and leaves would never make it. We went to a nearby FedEx Store (on West Bell Road) and found that they would be closed till Noon. We drove on to a UPS Store (on West Bell Road) and had the centerpiece and glasses shipped for a mere $92, with AAA discount.

Most of the party proceeded to the Fry's Supermarket (on West Bell Road) on an expedition to acquire materials for lunch. I sat in the car and played with the radio. The FM band in the Phoenix area is not rich with choices.

We went back to the hotel and had soup for lunch. I was feeling tired, so I went to the room to lie down and read for a while. I brought along a good translation of Xenophon's Anabasis. The rest of the party printed boarding passes and confirmed our reservations with Super Shuttle.

Later in the afternoon, we decided to go to the Bayrischer Hof, a restaurant across the road. It was not a fancy place, but the food was excellent. I had bratwurst with broccoli, mashed potatoes, and sauerkraut. For dessert we all had home made apple strudel.

We went back to the hotel and started packing.

Monday morning we got up and had breakfast. The sky was cloudy. I put gas in the car and returned it to Enterprise. At 75 year old gentleman gave me a ride back. He said he didn't want to completely retire. It's working for him.

We helped the in-laws get their stuff together and checked out by 11. The Super Shuttle van was supposed to come by noon, but was a bit late. The driver took a detour to avoid heavy traffic on West Bell Road. I'll miss West Bell Road.

The airport was busy. When we got to the Southwest gate, where we found that the preceding flight to Milwaukee was late leaving. There was bad weather in the Midwest and east.

Our plane came in a bit late. Our flight was due out at 3. They told us it would leave at 3:40. Then they told us it would leave at 3:15. We boarded and found seats. The plane was not full. There were clouds below us all the way to San Francisco, where we heard it was windy and raining. Takeoffs and landings were restricted because of the weather. After we were in the air for a long time, I noticed that the sun was shining through the starboard windows, meaning we were going south. The captain announced that we would be circling for a while. I think we saw Half Moon Bay through a break in the clouds. The low sun made pretty patterns on the clouds. I wish I could have taken some photos.

Our plane was due to land at 4. We landed about 5. We helped our in-laws get to the Super Shuttle loading area then called Sky Park. Our car was ready when we got there.

When we got home, the cat was happy to see us. Again it seemed later than it actually was. We slept well in our own beds.

I'm happy I took the day off on Tuesday. I went to the post office to get the mail, wrote Christmas cards (finally) and wrapped gifts. Later I helped to clean the kitchen.

Today I got to work and found only 240 unread emails waiting for me. Then I got a call from home saying that the cat had disappeared. I suggested that indoor cats don't usually go far if they get out the door, and that she might still be in the house. Later they found her occluding herself in a new spot.

Today was also my first day commuting on BART on a regular basis since 1995. I wound up on a four-car train going into the city.

I took the photo Monday morning from our patio at the Windmill Inn in Surprise (on West Bell Road).

Wedding in Arizona #1 -- December 22, 2009

We just got back from Arizona, where we went to attend a wedding. Weddings are always nice, but this was a particularly good one. We flew down to Phoenix Sky Harbor on Southwest Friday morning. We left the car at Sky Park in San Bruno. There was a very long line for the TSA inspection. The 737 was full, but my wife had gotten boarding passes as soon as she could the day before, so we had our pick of seats. The air was turbulent for much of the trip. The stewardesses had handed out about 1/3 of the drinks before they had to strap themselves in. They were able to finish service before the flight was over.

We were picked up by ExecuCar and went out to Surprise. Interesting name. Our hotel, the Windmill Inn, and virtually everything else in Surprise was on West Bell Road. We met my in-laws there. It was a nice place, by pond with a flock of ducks. We went to a nearby Enterprise office (on West Bell Road) to pick up a car. We upgraded to a Toyota Avalon. Nice car -- when I started it, I couldn't tell the engine was running.

We headed off to the rehearsal at Saint Claire of Assisi church (on West Bell Road). The best man and his wife, coming from the Los Angeles area, were stuck behind a 6-fatality accident on I-10, so our nephew stood in for him. My wife read the first reading, my daughter read an intention, and my brother-in-law and I took up the gifts. I also volunteered to walk my mother-in-law up the aisle before and back down the aisle after.

After that, we headed for Tiburon Restaurant and Aquarium (not on West Bell Road), next to the Wildlife World Zoo in Litchfield Park. The patio outside our room looked out on the flamingo pond. My brother-in-law and I discussed why an animal would evolve the habit of standing on one leg. We couldn't figure it out. A window looked out on an indoor pool with an albino alligator. There was an excellent singer/guitar player whose name I neglected to write down. He had a heart full of music, mostly blues-related. We danced a little bit. The chocolate-corn tamale for desert was unique. It was a nice rehearsal dinner.

Saturday morning, the ladies headed for hair and makeup appointments and I went for a walk. It was windy and cool. I found the ducks across the road. After everyone got dressed, we headed for the Corte Bella Country Club (not on West Bell Road) in Sun City West for non-traditional pre-wedding photographs. It was windy up there, so some of the pictures should be very dramatic. There was some confusion about the location, so not everyone made it in time. The room and the view were wonderful.

We went on to the church (on West Bell Road). There weren't any ushers, so I helped with opening the doors and directing people. The priest presiding was Father Brian Paulson, SJ, president of Saint Ignatius, Chicago. I mentioned that I had attended Saint Ignatius in San Francisco. He said he has many friends there.

The mass and wedding ceremony went well, with a lovely song before everyone processed in. Father Paulson gave a good homily. I fought the habit of taking the collection before bringing up the gifts. After mass they took more photos in the church. Saint Claire is a nearly-new church building, having been occupied on Christmas Eve last year. It is very large and has a nice ceiling with a series of blue arches that look like the heavens. There is a remarkable crucifix hanging over the altar. I had to explain why there was a skull and crossbones at the bottom.

We went back to the country club for the reception. After, the DJ said it was a very good crowd to work with, and he particularly liked the kids. Our nieces our nephew and our daughter all had a good time. The groom's grandmother and aunt did all the flowers and centerpieces. They are talented. We danced. The food and wine were very good.

We went back to the hotel exhausted. I thought it was 10pm, but it turned out to be only 7:30.

I took the photo late Sunday morning at the hotel. We were sitting on our patio and ducks started running towards us from the lake.

More tomorrow.