It has been a very long week of trial and tribulation. Every indication is that this will be the trend for at least another week, so yesterday was a welcome respite in between these storms.
It started with a pleasant breakfast shared with my son. Then there was a long reflective walk on the Monolith Garden Trail amongst the spires of stone with the quiet comfort of my dearest friend to provide solace.
The afternoon was filled with laughter and family. My son, his fiance, and our six week old grandson stopped by with a surprise, our three year old granddaughter. The transformation from when we last saw here on our last visit a year ago was stunning, as she has become quite the charming young lady.
To round off the perfect day we met with Dale Butel, Route 66 Tours of Australia, the television crew that has been accompanying Grant Denyers (link for great video from the tour) also of Australia, as he explorers the wonders of Route 66, and his charming wife, Cheryl, at the Dambar. Chris Durkin of the Kingman Area Chamber of Commerce, and his wife Daylene, ensured it was a well rounded gathering.
The Aussies began their odyssey in Chicago with a 1979 Cadillac. The game plan at that time was for a Sunday evening reception at the Powerhouse Visitor Center.
The death of the Cadillac near Albuquerque, and permit issues pertaining to filming at the Grand Canyon National Park, tossed their schedule into disarray. As a testimony to the power of the reborn Kingman Area Chamber of Commerce, last minute arrangements were made to have the group film Sunday’s segment at the Grand Canyon West Resort.
Problems with equipment resulted in a delay at the canyon which in turn resulted in postponement of the reception at the Powerhouse. This in turn resulted in the impromptu gathering at the Dambar late last evening.
Their schedule for this morning is Oatman and then Las Vegas before returning to Route 66 at Goffs. Their adventure will culminate with a visit to Santa Monica Pier and an interview with the unofficial mayor of the pier, Dan Rice.
Meanwhile, my schedule kicks into high gear. The encyclopedia has languished for several weeks but as this is my day off there are arrangements to finalize for tomorrow, a litany of related loose ends, prints for Christmas gifts to be made, and as the weather is absolutely exceptional, another long walk with my dearest friend this afternoon.
On a final note for the day, did you have the chance to look at the tips and books post this past weekend? What are your thoughts on this as a weekly feature?
