Sunday, September 7, 2014

The San Francisco Hard Hat Walk and Riding Planes with Valkyries




Oliver and I had a wonderful weekend up north. We had a good visit with my sweet Aunt Yvonne who is eighty five years old and very frail but still sharp as a tack. We also drove up to San Francisco to participate in the Children's Hospital Hard Hat Walk. We were proud members of Team Maggie, walking in her memory alongside many of Sally's friends and family. The energy there was lovely -- there was music and delicious food from local restaurants, and the hospital looks like it will be an amazing center of health and healing. The only thing missing, of course, was darling Maggie, but I imagine her spirit infused everything and everyone. It was a beautiful evening in San Francisco and an impressive event. I confess to not realizing that it was a real walk, like a miles and miles walk, and only wore a trusty pair of Birkenstock sandals, but my feet are still attached to my body twenty-four hours later, and I'm pretty excited that I finally got a decent amount of exercise after languishing for weeks with that dadgum virus.

Here's Sally and me:



Here's the Big O and me:



Not a bad view to walk along and gaze upon --


Oliver and I flew back on a Southwest Air flight from San Jose to Los Angeles this afternoon with the entire UCLA women's volleyball team. I don't think I've ever seen a powerhouse college volleyball team, and ya'll -- these women were like Valkyries. The tallest ones, and there were a bunch of tallest ones, were well over six feet and many had waist-length yellow blonde hair. The team was pretty diverse in every way except for height, and I have to say that it was hard not to stare at them walking as a group -- they honestly looked like they'd stepped out of some kind of mythical adventure book. These photos really don't do it justice, but I wonder where they all come from if not the realm of the gods.




How was your weekend?

6 comments:

  1. Looks like a great event! I'm glad you were able to get out and about -- even in Birks -- and kick the last of the virus. I love the photo of the drummers!

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  2. Great descendants of Vikings and Amazons, perhaps. They are awesome. Looks like a gorgeous and meaningful day.

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  3. What a great thing to do and how good to have a visit with your aunt. A children's hospital which will be a center of health and healing- I would walk for that.
    Those young women!
    You know, Jessie is 5'11" and Virgil is over six feet tall and he has AUNTS who are over 6'5".
    They need to start signing contracts now.
    I would imagine lots of Norwegian and Swedish genes in that group. Like Glen's genes. Vikings, indeed, as Ms. Vesuvius said.

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  4. Love the hardhat walk and that you had such a nice quick trip and you still have your feet.
    Also love the volleyball girl pics, long hair is a thing in volleyball, I'm not sure why. I always feel so tiny in their midst and still marvel every day how I managed to make one of my own :)

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  5. Hooray all of you. My mom and I flew to Baltimore with the Redlands soccer team.

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  6. I'm so glad that you got to make this trip with the Big O, and to walk with your friend in support of the new Children's Hospital. (I think that Katie's heart surgeon left Seattle Children's to work on it, as one of the directors of their heart center. He is a wonderful man - they are blessed to have him.)

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