#NeverNotAwkward

"It takes a long time to become young." -- Pablo Picasso

I had a conversation earlier this evening with my oldest niece about the trials of youth. She's 16, and struggles with wanting to be older while simultaneously clinging to things seemingly "young" for her age. This isn't a new conversation for us to have - we had conversations about her desire to "be a grown up" several times over the summer while she stayed with me in California. Part of this desire to be older comes from a misguided perception that age = maturity, and maturity = money "for better clothes/style." She lives in the same small town that I went to high school in, and kids can be pretty cruel there when you don't fit in. (I'm sure this is true elsewhere, right?) She also desperately wants to get older so that she can make her own rules, seemingly ignorant about how the few rules she is expected to follow are there to help her succeed. Being a teenager is rough, yo.

I reflected on this for a while, and started reminiscing about my own journey into adulthood. I started baby-sitting very, very young, and consequently thought I was an adult before I was even 10 years old. I would often try to interject myself into adult conversations, usually ignoring conversations with my friends and siblings. Those of you who have only known me as an adult will find it interesting, then, for me to describe myself as a serious, quiet child... but I that's exactly what I was! I preferred the company of adults, but was usually too shy to actively participate. I would instead sit by adults quietly and eavesdrop on their conversations.

As I got older, I watched the adults and teenagers in my life intently... desiring so much to be like them, but always falling appropriately short. I embraced their style to an almost comedic extreme. So young and naive I was that I often confused the dress of my teenage cousins with that of my mother and her friends (see granny dress with shoulder pads above paired with rainbow sweatbands). My young and unfashionable brain was unable to decipher style trends amongst the generations, so I often combined them and pretended it was on purpose.

To top this all off, I came of age at a time when tacky fashion was all the rage. My favorite dress for a good 3-4 years was the beautiful blue number above - so 80s/90s, so "Saved by the Bell." I genuinely thought that if I dressed like this, I would make friends with the people who's attention I craved the most - the teenagers and adults! I was wrong, of course, and ended up mostly attracting the attention of bullies and jerks instead. 

As I moved on into middle school, I started to relax. I made a few good friends, and started learning to have fun. Ever the imitator, it was their style that I started to copy. I never quite knew what my sense of style was, so I copied from those that I considered to be the best dressed. It was fun, and I started to fit in... for a while. 

My desire to look cool, however, was always tarnished by the fact that I looked nothing like my peers. I was not only tall-ish for my age, but I rapidly developed into the body of a curvy 20 year old by the age of 13. My dark skin and wavy hair was nothing like the pale-skinned blondes I hung out with, yet I copied their hairstyles and makeup all the time. This led to a dark period I refer to as the Permed Era - a time of blue eyeshadow, permed hair, and pink blush. The horror! Let's never go back there, friends.

None of my attempts at "being cool" were ever well received by my peers or my friends. I was teased by classmates and friends alike throughout middle school, often resigning myself to a quiet corner in class rather than anywhere I would be the center of attention. By the time I got to high school, I stopped trying to be fashionable altogether. I felt like I looked like an "old lady" anyway, so I sort of started dressing the part. This not only helped me avoid attention from the mean girls and boys at school, but it also stopped the unwanted advances I started getting from creepy old men and a few of my friends' dads/uncles. I became sorta invisible, and I was ok with that. (Thank GOD there wasn't any social media back then!)

By the time I got to college, I finally started to feel comfortable in my skin. I discovered a more casual sense of style that worked for me, and started to care less what others thought of me. I chose to go to the biggest school in the state, and that helped me too - most of the mean girls didn't end up at my college, and the ones that did weren't in my social circles anyway. I ended up dating a guy from my high school in college that would have been way out of my league in high school, but it was a non-issue for the most part. If/when our social circles did collide, I was always pleasantly surprised that most people forgot about those awful, awkward years and pretended to remember me as the nice, friendly girl who hung out with their mutual friends. 

Now, this journey down my tragical history is not simply a comedic break from reality. I share all this to show to my niece that nearly everyone goes through their awkward phases. Middle school and high school are hard times for most of us, and that's ok. You can survive it, and come away ok! 

If your teens are the time to figure out your style, your twenties are the time you figure out the rest. I had plenty of ups and downs, but with age came the maturity to learn how to sort those feelings out better than I had when I was younger. I won't say anyone ever figures it all out all the time, but you certainly get better at trying. As I move through my thirties, I embrace my goofiness more and my sense of style reflects that. If someone is saying something bad about how I look, I'm pretty ignorant to it these days. I am who I am, and I'm ok with that. Boy, do I wish I had figured that out earlier... but at least I know this now!

Bottom line - don't be so hard on yourself, kid. Being a teenager is rough, and you're not going to figure it all out before you're 18. Stay in school. Do what makes you feel good. Embrace the goof! And keep in mind that everyone is going through the same struggle as you are in high school - even those mean bullies I keep hearing about. Be kind. Be thoughtful. And don't spend so much time thinking about what has already happened. Embrace today, and look forward to tomorrow. I know people say again and again that "it gets better," but I'm here to tell you that it does! Enjoy your youth while you still have it. Have a little fun! And, dammit, stay in school!

Love you so much, Katiekins!

Auntie Becks

Zip A Dee Ay

"Remember, you're the one who can fill the world with sunshine." -- Snow White

Hello, again! Here's part two of my adventures with Erica! As I mentioned (I think?) in my last two posts, I got to visit the Walt Disney Studio Lot a second time when Erica came to visit at the end of May. This was exciting for soooo many reasons, the biggest of which I can't talk about here. Needless to say, however, Erica was stoked to find out that we were going here! Although Erica isn't quite as much of a location stalking fan as yours truly, she loves herself some Disney fare! 

As the guest of an employee, you are asked to park in what is commonly referred to as the Zorro lot, so named because it's the site of the former Zorro television show set. My friend's office is at the other end of the studio lot, so we ended up passing a couple of the stages as we made our way to meet her. In my two visits to the lot, Stage 6 has always been the one to catch my eye the most. Stage 6 is one of the newest stages on the lot, sitting on the former backlot area of the property. During both of my visits, the gigantic stage doors were covered in advertisements for The Muppets television show. Erica thought that the ad was adorable, and just had to get a picture! Sadly, The Muppets was cancelled just before our visit, so they were actively dismantling the sets when we were there. 

My friend works in the nearby Frank G. Wells Building, which is a great building to hang out in while waiting for a meeting with a friend. While officially home to both Disney's Music Group and Marvel Entertainment, the building is also well known by cast members and visitors alike for housing the lot's Starbucks Coffee Shop and Disney Archives. The lobby is always full of some sort of fun advertisements for current new releases, and the display cases often have some amazing pieces from the archives themselves. During this visit, many of the display cases were showing off the recent Captain America movie costumes and props! Erica could hardly contain her excitement - she's a big comic book nerd like me!

After a quick visit to the Archives and a mini tour of her building, our friend joined Erica and me for a quick tour of the lot itself. The fun thing about being on a studio lot is seeing it so busy with activity! I couldn't help but spy a production truck for Once Upon a Time as we made our way to the commissary. Most of the filming for Once happens in Canada, but my mom and I actually came across them filming one scene for the show in Burbank. I'm not sure if they were actually filming on the lot that day or not, but it sure was fun to see!

Walking around on the lot is like a visit back in time - so many of the buildings and signage is reminiscent of a different time; different era. It's so authentic to Walt Disney's time there, for example, that Disney didn't have to change a whole lot when they filmed scenes for Saving Mr. Banks on the lot (note the font used for "Stage A" above). In fact, Stage A is a film location for the Saving Mr. Banks film! It was used for a scene in which Pamela meets the Sherman Brothers for the first time. Originally built a scoring stage for orchestras, Stage A has been the home to many of Disney's classic soundtracks. This includes films such as Fantasia, Babes in Toyland, Mary Poppins, Tangled, and more! The building is unique as it's actually constructed as a building within a building to help with noise control. It's now Disney's key stage for music and sound dubbing, and is still in use today!

Just around the corner from Stage A, you'll find the lot's Movie Theater. This is a screening theater Disney uses to preview new movies before their release for executives and Disney employees. It was also featured in Saving Mr. Banks due to its proximity to the Animation building directly across from it. (During filming, the marquee was covered with an advertisement for Snow White.)

Most of Saving Mr. Banks took place in and around the animation building. This is one of the larger older buildings on the lot, and was the home to Walt Disney's office. I love that we can go inside this office when visiting - the walls are lined with so many cool things! My personal favorites are the sketches and in-progress prints and cells from some of my favorite Disney classics. Erica is pictured with sketchbooks from Beauty and the Beast!

After saying goodbye to my friend, I offered Erica a quick tour/walk through the studio lot itself. These stages are so cool! They are numbered in order of age, with Stage 1 being the first we happened upon. Stage 1 is the smallest of the stages on the lot, but it's also the oldest (built in 1940). It's had a variety of roles in addition to being a soundstage, including being used to repair army vehicles during World war II! The first motion picture to ever film there was Fantasia, but was most famous for being the stage for the original Mickey Mouse Club. The MMC was so impactful that Disney decided to honor that history by re-dedicating it in honor of the most famous member of the Club, Annette Funicello. 

The next stage we went up to was Stage 2 - the second oldest and largest stage on the lot. It has a similar colorful history, but is best known by Disney fans as being the stage where Mary Poppins was filmed. It was eventually dedicated to Julie Andrews for her roles in two films shot here - both the previously mentioned Mary Poppins and, more recently, The Princess Diaries.

The last stage I just had to show Erica was my personal favorite, Stage 4. This stage is most well known for being home to Home Improvement during its eight year run on TV. Currently, it's home to one of my favorite shows, Blackish.

Alas, our quick tour had to come to an equally quick close and we had to hurry back to our car. We had tattoos to get after all, and didn't want to be late since our tattooist was coming in on his day off just to do that for us. I am so extremely grateful for being allowed to visit the studio lot again with Erica. They say that Los Angeles is the city of dreams, and that may be true, but for me... California as a whole is the state of dreams! So many of mine have been realized since moving here! You're never going to get me to leave :)

I have many, many more adventures to write about from the last few months, and I promise to get to them. But for now... I must sleep! Have a great week, y'all!

Until next time...

--- Becks

Funfetti

"Maybe we can be each other's soul mates...

... and then we can let men be just these great, nice guys to have fun with." -- Charlotte

As longtime friends and readers of this blog know, I have a small but close-knit circle of people in my life that I have come to refer to as "best friends." To paraphrase Mindy Kaling, "Best friend is not a person; it's a tier." Anyway, most of these wonderful people unfortunately live nowhere near me. Heck, only one even lives in the same time zone! Thus, visits with these special people mean the world to me. And visits from my Erica, well... those are in a category all to themselves!

Erica hails from the Mile High city, although we met long ago in the other mile high city, Albuquerque. While most of my "best friends" are people I love because we are so much alike, Erica and I have grown close in our diversity. I like to say that she's the ying to my yang - sure, we have a lot of similarities, but our differences or quirks are nicely complemented by each other's. Needless to say, I miss her dearly. When the opportunity came up for her to visit, I quickly jumped at the chance!

Erica had only one request for her visit - she wanted for us to get the "best friend" tattoos we have talked about for years and years. Seriously. This isn't a joke. It has come up in conversation every time that Erica and I have vacationed together in the last 10 years. We originally just planned to get tattoos at the same time, but recent circumstances called for more! After committing to finally doing it, I called a good friend of mine to ask for the contact information for her tattoo guy. During that conversation, my friend asked if Erica would like to see the Walt Disney Studio Lot, and I said yes! (I don't want to name my friend for fear that others will ask her for similar access, but THANK YOU! You know who you are, and it was an amazingly generous gesture, my friend!) We have lots of pictures from that adventure, but I'll share them separately. 

After a nice visit on the Studio Lot, Erica and I hurried down to my friend's tattoo guy's parlor to get our tattoos. We looked at a TON of pictures for inspiration, but every one we found didn't feel quite "us." Some were too young; others too frilly. We finally found a trio of pictures for inspiration, and provided them to Jeff for him to design. The resulting tattoo was so friggin' cute! Erica's tattoo is in the foreground in the picture above, while mine is in the back. Jeff picked which tattoo should go on each of us, and we both got a kick out of how he picked. Erica's girl is very prim and proper... much like me. My girl is more silly and playful... much like her! We were thrilled with how these turned out!

After our tattoos were done, we headed to Universal to pick up our friend, Shika. (Shika got a fancy new job, so she couldn't join our earlier hijinks) Earlier in the week, someone had shared with me the news that a new New Mexican inspired food truck had started up in LA. We learned that the food truck was scheduled to be in Burbank that night, so we planned to find it and try it! Boy, was it worth it! Sopaipillas, green chile burgers, real sugar coke... it was like being home! We roamed the boutiques along Magnolia for a while before dropping Shika off and heading home.

When I asked Erica what she wanted to do while she was here, she had two suggestions: either visit an old, giant fig tree in Santa Barbara, or visit the old, giant Sequoias in Sequoia National Forest. Given the "ah" factor of the latter, I suggested we go to the Trail of 100 Giants. This place never gets old!

Being the awesome girls that we are, Erica and I invited my intern to join us. It was a perfect morning for a hike! Both were struck by the tremendous size of the trees, and the stillness of the forest. It was the busiest I have ever seen the park (we got one of the last parking spots), but you could still hear a pin drop when you ventured away from the main paths. The Trail has experienced a lot of trauma recently, and one of the trails was closed while we were there. To quote the Park Ranger, "Some of the old trees are dying and falling. Don't get on the closed trail. Those trees will squash you like a bug in seconds. Have a great time!" And despite the closed trails, we did have a great time!

Because we went to the park so early in the day, we got home with plenty of time to plan other adventures. First, we met with one of my closest local friends for "coffee" (read: coffee for me; tea for everyone else) at a local bookstore. Erica and I bought the sunglasses pictured above at Audrey's Boutique in Burbank the night before, so of course we had to take a selfie wearing them! Later in the evening, I took Erica to see my friend perform in a comedy show... at a morgue. Something fun to tell her friends back home, I'm sure! She's a big comedy fan like me, though, so we had a great time.

Like all of the best things, Erica's trip came to a quick end the following day. We took our time and had a lazy morning, then slowly made our way to LAX for her departure. The plan was for me to drop Erica off at her gate, then walk down two gates to pick up my niece who was arriving the same day. And that is what we did... 

About two hours after leaving LAX, however, I received a call from Erica stating that she missed her flight. I panicked - I wasn't sure how to help her or what to do. Luckily, the airline angels assisted her and were able to get her on another flight the next morning. Not wanting to leave her stranded, my niece and I headed back to LAX to pick her up. We grabbed burritos in Marina del Rey, and helped her find a hotel for the night. It was nice for the two of them to see each other and get caught up, so the missed flight was a blessing in disguise. Alas, it was getting late and we all needed to go to bed. We bid Erica adieu, and left her at a hotel near LAX.

I wrote this originally about a week after Erica left California, but wasn't sure when I would see her next. I'm super excited to report that I now know that I will be heading out east in her direction in September. Yay! I can't wait to see her again. 

Stay tuned for my other Disney post... soon!

Until next time...

--- Becks

Everyday Magic

"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious 

and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." -- Walt Disney

I cannot believe I have this guest pass in my possession. Yes friends... after years of showing visiting friends the adorable Walt Disney Studios from outside of the gates, I finally was invited inside! Just a week after Eugene's visit, a friend invited me to lunch at Walt Disney Studios! Now, y'all... I was excited enough to be invited to lunch, let alone at Walt Disney Studios! But to experience what got to experience that day was, well... just keep reading :)

We arrived early for lunch, and were told to just "hang out" until my friend could take her break. Having never been on the lot before, I took the opportunity to explore Legends Plaza on the north end of the lot. Legends Plaza is a large square anchored on one end with the Legends statue (featuring Mickey's arm holding a star-tipped wand on top of a scroll) and at the other with the Partners statue (featuring Mickey and Walt holding hands). Each of the columns surrounding the courtyard contains plaques honoring each of Disney's Legends, recognizing individuals who have had an extraordinary and lasting impact on the Disney empire. 

(Note in the above picture that the seven dwarves are featured prominently on the building in the background. These statues are HUGE, and very symbolic. At the time that "Snow White" was created, Disney Studios was losing money and was flirting with bankruptcy. They hoped and prayed that "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" would be successful... and it was! The film grossed over $8 million, and held the title of highest grossing motion picture until "Gone with the Wind." The dwarves today "hold up" the Team Disney building to symbolize the power of their first full feature animated film. You can read more fun facts about the dwarves here.)

Also featured on the plaza is a statue of Roy Disney with Minnie Mouse as pictured above. 

Love this!

After my friend was released for her lunch break, we made our way further into the lot to have lunch in the commissary. On the way, we passed the delightful Pluto's Corner - pretty much catty-corner to the commissary. Because I'm a nerd that researched the studio before visiting it, I knew this site well. The street sign pictured above is actually a prop from a pseudo-documentary called "The Reluctant Dragon." This adorable 1941 was produced by the studio as an entertaining way of showing off the studio and giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on there. The street sign above was created as a prop for that movie - the street names and locations are all real, but the signs aren't pointing towards the direction of where the locations are actually located. It's a great looking prop - so great that the studio decided to keep it up after filming. 

Such attention to detail! Notice the three paw prints near the hydrant -

it would seem our friend Pluto stopped to mark his corner!

Also near the commissary is one of the original buildings from the studio's former Hyperion Avenue studio location in Hollywood. The 1935 bungalow was selected as one of the buildings that Walt wanted to hang on to, so it was moved from Hollywood to Burbank when the studio lot was created between 1939-40. 

As interesting as the Hyperion Bungalow is, however, it is not the oldest building on the lot. On the other side of the studio lot is a small, unassuming building that houses Disney's Digital Studio Services. This building, built in 1937, is another of the original Hyperion buildings and is the oldest of them on the lot.

My friend had to leave us for a while to attend a meeting, so she dropped us off at her building to visit the Walt Disney Archives while we waited. This was SO COOL! Pictured above is one of the animator's desks, with Walt warmly greeting you to take a peek :)

Near the animator's desk is an original sketch of Steamboat Willie, as drawn by Walt Disney himself.

The "Little Man" project was also on display. These were so cool. The figures and busts of little men were created by engineers and architects to test form and motion. Some of these had tiny gears inside that allowed the figures to move their jaws and blink their eyes using tiny wires to control them. This project was the precursor to Disney's Animatronic marvels, the earliest of which you can see at the Tiki Room in Disneyland. There were so many other antiques, film props, and Walt Disney personal memorabilia on display in this room. I took a ton of pics, but in the interest of brevity, I'm not posting all that here. You'll have to take my word for it!

My favorite moment, however, came as a complete surprise. As we were leaving the archives, one of the cast members allowed us to hold and photograph one of Walt's many Oscars! I never thought I'd be holding an Oscar in my lifetime, friends... let alone Walt Disney's. Did you know Walt Disney is one of the most, if not THE most, winning artists/entertainers in Oscar history? He personally won 32 of these statues, and accepted several more under the studio name. I spent a good 5 minutes with this Oscar. It was seriously cool. 

Outside of the archives is one of my favorite pieces of animation history - the multiplane camera created and used for "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves." This picture doesn't do the camera justice - this thing is gigantic! This invention was revolutionary for animation as it allowed animators to capture depth in a 2D drawing. While not actually multidimensional, the camera did allow animators to capture different layers of the scene at different speeds. This was possible by moving things closer and further from the camera. The camera was housed at the top of the device, with as many as seven planes set up beneath it. 

After our archive tour, my friend gave me a quick tour of the studio's Animation and Ink & Paint buildings. Did you know that a series of tunnels connected these, and other, buildings on the studio lot? Me either! These were apparently created to allow employees to move freely between the buildings in inclement weather. I know what you're thinking... it never rains in LA. But keep in mind that early animation was all done by hand. Each cell was hand drawn and hand painted, and these were delivered from the ink & paint building to the animation building one at a time to keep them in pristine condition. Rain or other weather would have ruined these cells, and stopping production for weather would have been costly. The tunnels were very interesting, but very creepy. I can't imagine being down there by myself or after-hours. 

We spent the rest of our visit touring the actual stages and studios on the lots. In the interest of not making this even longer, I'm going to hold off on posting those pictures for now. I took better pictures of same when I went back to the lot just a month later, so I'll post about those then. (Yes, I got to go back. Squee!) In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this behind the scenes look at the Walt Disney Studios! I am so immensely grateful to have had the opportunity to visit this place! I'm a blessed girl to have such great friends take me on such amazing adventures!

Until next time...

... Becks

Fresh Air

"Nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. 

The vey basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. 

The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun." -- Jon Krakauer

I'm back! My last post of the Eugene series combines our last two days of his vacation in California. We started the next day in LA by eating at the #1 Yelp rated brunch place in West Hollywood, and stopping by the filming location for The Golden Girls in Brentwood (Thank you for being a friend!). I could blog about that, but I would rather blog about my favorite parts of those two days - hiking and the beach.

When we were planning his trip, I asked Eugene to pack comfy shoes. This is asking a lot - Eugene likes to fly Spirit Air and usually only travels with a small backpack. Unsurprisingly, Eugene agreed anyway and I planned a couple of hiking adventures. Hiking is one of my favorite things to do, so I was glad Eugene wanted to join me!

The first place on my itinerary was for the two of us to visit Wildwood Park in Thousand Oaks to search for Paradise Falls. This had been on my bucket list for a while - I had recently missed an opportunity to hike here with my hiking group, and had been dying to go ever since. The day we headed to the trail was perfect! And despite the temperature heating up, the park was still fairly green and there were a few lingering wildflowers along the trail.

One of my favorite things about Wildwood Park is how well marked all of the trails are. While I'm pretty good at navigating by just reading a map, having a well-marked trail is always helpful. There were several options to hike down to the falls, but we chose the shortest since we had planned another full day.

The hike gently descended for most of the way to the falls, only increasing in grade as we descended the final 250' down to the falls and creek themselves. The trails were very busy, but everyone was accommodating and polite. Eugene and I marveled at the mountain bikers biking up the hill, and the dad's carrying their children. It wasn't horrifically steep, but it was still quite a climb!

The falls themselves were pretty but small. I didn't expect Yosemite, but it was surprising given how much people had raved about them online. Still, we enjoyed the cool comfort of the shade near the falls, and spent a few minutes admiring the area. After a few pictures, we double-backed and went up the way we came. The initial 250' climb was steep, but doable (although my asthma was kicking my rear - thanks allergies!). We stopped briefly at the Teepee before heading back, hopping quickly in the car to hit the pharmacy (again - thanks allergies) and get back on the road.

We took the scenic route north to Kern County, slicing through Ventura County up through Filmore and across to Santa Clarita. We discussed going to Sequoia several times before Eugene made the trip to California - Eugene really wanted to see the "big trees" at the Trail of 100 Giants, and I always enjoy Sequoia National Forest. Sadly, the NPS advised me that the road to the Trail of 100 Giants was still closed for the season (there was still snow on the roads!), so we contemplated skipping it. 

After a quick nap, however, we decided to at least drive up through the canyon (Kern Canyon) as Eugene had never seen that before. Sunset was quickly catching up to us, so we headed out just in time for the golden hour. Eugene marveled at the rocky, curvy canyon roads, and we decided to take a quick break within the forest to hike around and enjoy the views. 

While I think we both would have liked to hike more, Eugene and I stayed pretty close to the main road. The nocturnal critters were starting to stir, and we didn't want to get stuck after dark. The forest was surprisingly and eerily quiet - perfect for us to talk and reflect, but a little odd at the same time. The normally fuller (at this time of year) Kern River was very low, but the sound of it hitting the rocks in the valley was quite soothing.

Eugene and I headed back up to the car, and decided to just stop here and there so he could take some pictures. The pic above was our last selfie of that day. We stopped at this rocky area for quite a while - the water formed multiple pools and falls, so it was really pretty and pleasant. I was dismayed, however, at the vast amount of graffiti and broken beer bottles on the rocks below. I actually really like graffiti and street art, but here? Is nothing sacred? Why must people trash everything we have that is good? Sigh.

Eugene headed back to the east coast the following day. As with all good things, Eugene's trip had come to a close and it was time for me to return him to the airport. We opted to take the ocean route from Ventura to LAX so that Eugene could see parts of the PCH he hadn't seen before. It was a beautiful day... so beautiful that the entire state of California seemed to join us on our tour! LOL. Despite the crowds and traffic, we enjoyed taking the slow and steady route, stopping off to enjoy the views in Ventura and at Malibu Bluffs Park. It took us for-ev-er to get through Malibu, but we finally made it to Venice to finish out our day.

Since we only had a couple of hours left before his flight, Eugene and I grabbed a quick dinner at Fish Enterprise Co in Venice and planned to head to LAX. We finished earlier than planned, however, so I decided to introduce him to part of the famous Venice Boardwalk. It was late in the day, and most of the crazies had already headed home. The sun was going down quickly - a harsh reminder that our time together was up, and I needed to get him to the airport. Neither of us wanted him to leave, but we were grateful for the time we did get to spend together. 

Eugene's visit was as good as it gets. We both got to vent frustrations, share secrets, and build each other up - something I incredibly value in friendships but so rarely get to do. We agreed that three years is too long for us to go without seeing each other, and I hope that we can see each other again soon. (I'm hoping to at least see him in November in Florida - fingers crossed!)

This post has spawned an idea I have to write about, but in the spirit of keeping this about Eugene and my vacation, I'll leave it for now. Eugene is one of those rare individuals who always leaves me happier than I was before I saw him. I will forever be grateful to him and the rest of my Houston "Richton" crew - it was a special little apartment complex, with a unique sense of community. And while I keep in touch with many to this day (10 years later), Eugene is one of the few that I will forever stay close to. Thank you, Eugene, for taking the time to see me!

Until next time... (go forth, and explore!)

--- Becks