Jun 2008

Leaving Omaha was more treacherous than expected - this wicked cloud system was actually pulling clouds up into it, and we stayed overnight at a WalMart parking lot. In Wyoming, to boot! hehe.

Our plans while leaving Omaha were to go to Colorado to do some mountain biking. Now, we have had plans to go to Colorado to do some skiing previously, and ended up at Powder Mountain in Utah. Seems that is our lot when we try to plan. The Keystone opening was delayed a week due to all the snow they had gotten pounded with this winter, so our plans changed yet again. As we were driving down the interstate in Nebraska, we decided to go to Moab, then against it, then to Salt Lake City – mountains got to have mountain biking, right? Well, although we never got around to biking, we did end up at Lagoon, where we hadn't been in AGES. And they actually have a pretty nice campground attached to it, complete with a river and a trail.

Jaclyn and Crystalyn and Vinnie the pup drove up to see us and grill out. Vinnie and Charlie weren't sure what to think of each other, it was either love or hate. When we went to Smiths to get the food, Marian's van was parked out front, but I couldn't find her wandering around the grocery.

No surprise here, but we were surrounded by kids and families. In fact, our neighbor at the campground told us how fun it was there, *if* you have kids. We just stared blankly at him, and had fun by our thirty-year-old selves. Yeah, we got nauseous, and yes we were tired, and yes my neck hurt, but hell yeah we had fun.

Goodbye Omaha! We had a wonderful time in Omaha, being able to do family activities and events like graduations, births, coffee with grandma, and weddings. We’ll miss it, honestly. But we won’t miss the tornado scares. Charlie will really miss the dog park and Elvis. Okay, Gus too.

Staying there so long this time, I was able to see the draw of Omaha – there really is a lot to do there – music, arts, biking, food, sports, etc. And that doesn't even take the family and friend aspect into consideration. Most of the events tie in somehow to alcohol, but hey, if I gotta…

We luckily got out just in time, as where we were parked in the fifth wheel is now home to two fallen trees, and loss of power for thousands. Thankfully, everyone is okay.

Hello. My name is Chelsea, and I am a foodoholic. I am the first to admit I have a food obsession, and I'm not embarrassed either. My niece Lauren shares this obsession with me, so we were both happier than shit to be at Brew Burgers during the visit of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Thanks to the fact that Mike and Kristen are friends with the owner, we got to go and eat some great food and see Guy Fieri in real life.

Thanks to Dennis and his connections we got tickets to a College World Series game at the historic Rosenblatt Stadium! I had never been to a game, and had no idea how big it is. There were booths setup along the street by the stadium selling schwag and entertaining kids. Before the game we met up with the brand new Hilts (plural) and friends for pre game libations. Glad we got to go especially because the stadium is getting replaced by a new one in downtown Omaha within the next five years, which is a huge point of contention and controversy here in the Big O. Caution: don't bring it up unless you want to hear an opinion. However, the bright side is that the city has the contract for the CWS until the year 2035. And isn’t it a RULE that you have to sing Take Me Out to the Ballgame?!

Well, we said the crazies were coming to town when we drove in, so we tried our best to prove it all week.

Near the Bagnell Dam is a strip of road with a great variety of things to do – arcades, stores, bars and food. It kinda reminded me of an area in Manitou Springs, Colorado.

Even though *this* monkey isn’t real, we did see a real monkey at the condo – the security guard was walking around with a diapered one on a leash one night. Very odd.

They had a car show one night – one classic BMW was there complete with a sign, and Cujo entered with his racecar sans sign.

The condo was huge and perfect for all of us to fit in comfortably, with a great deck overlooking the lake and hundreds of slips. Kirsten and Jackson fished with Papa Joe – this is just one that we snapped a picture of before it was released back. There were also lots of turtles and ducks swimming around the lake. And that speck in the lake picture with YuYong and Joe is Cujo in the distance rescuing a pool ball. So, like I said, lots of wildlife in the lake.

The wilderness is rampant here, and we were able to do some hiking at a state park and get some pet ticks. Cujo ended up with the highest count – I think around 10. One had to be removed with tweezers. Ugh, poor guy. One trail here led us to an old castle that had partially burned down more than 60 years ago.

In case you didn’t watch the Putt Putt Tournament of Champions live at Pirates Cove, here are the highlights… There are a lot of mini golf courses here, along with many of the regular version of the game. I prefer the one that needs no carts.

Our rainy day was devoted to poker. Doesn’t this look scary like an underground high stakes game? We are just missing the sunglasses. Oh, and the smoky haze. Ummm, and the high stakes. But… we do have the alcohol piece covered.

Speaking of alcohol, there is a great winery here, off the beaten path called Casa de Loco. Apparently, it’s an old looney bin – what a perfect location, no? As we drove to it, there were questioning looks as we rolled past decrepit dwellings, but there was light at the end of the tunnel. They have lodging with amazing amenities, room for events like weddings, an old stone staircase that leads you down to the river, and of course killer scenery.

The guys had a Tribute to Dad Day and dressed up like they remembered him dressing when they were kids – big crazy long hair, cutoff Levi shorts with the pockets showing, a Harley shirt, and a wallet with the chain. I’m still not sure he thought it was as funny as the rest of us did, but he was a good sport if not.

Happy Fathers Day!

Alas, the week was over, and we all drove back to where we came from… Well, we haven’t made it quite *home* just yet, but back to where we started from. Home is a relative term anyway for some people.