29 Aug 2012

Hello and Goodbye – Marvelous Midwest

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This post is THE FINAL INSTALLMENT of the 11-part series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. All in one very eventful trip.

Cali and Craig on the last day of The Mighty Mo Ukulele Festival.

My husband I live a 10K race away from LAX. It’s like there’s an airplane freeway in the sky that passes over our condo. This is the soundscape of life around here. In Missouri, it’s cicadas. I never actually see one, no little green guy with a “C” on his butt. But I hear them and ask a local person “what the hell is that?” I am told that sometimes the cicadas get so loud it’s impossible to carry on a conversation.

 

 

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18 Aug 2012

An Extra Day of Adventure

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This post is part 8 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 

We turn west onto a blue highway toward New Haven.  That’s not Connecticut.  It’s Missouri.  I didn’t know this “Show Me” state has a wine country.  But it does and here we are.  The corn crop is a lost cause.  The soybeans are hanging on for dear life.  Lord knows where the grapes are but the landscape is beautiful.  Soft rolling hills and lots of trees. Read More

28 Jul 2012

The Mama

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This post is part 3 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 

For those of you joining this miniseries midstream, let me catch you up.

My husband Craig and I flew into Indianapolis from Los Angeles. My first trip to the “middle.” We met and totally fell in love with a branch of my family that, up to very recently, I didn’t even know existed. And visa-versa. It’s an interesting story, a how-we-got-here-from-another-country story. Click for the details. Read More

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