First post in which I try to.. post.

So here we go.

My son, Tristan, and I did some traveling last year (2012).  

That's us, on a ferry.  It was windy.

Our travel destination for two of our most significant trips was California.  Specifically the San Francisco bay area and DISNEYLAND.

Did I mention that we live in Iowa?  We do.  And our travel to California begins in our car as we drive from our sleepy hamlet in northwest Iowa to the seething metropolis of Omaha, Nebraska.  There, we whet our appetites for exciting bay area foodstuffs at The Grey Plume.  The Grey Plume is not something that anyone would expect to exist in Omaha.  Or the Midwest.  The Grey Plume is unique, probably even among its hip, locavore peers on either coast.  I have had some of the most unusual and delicious food there, like a chamomile-oatmeal crème brulèe.  Which initially sounded like it could be just awful.  Why would you muck up something creamy and wonderful like crème brulèe with oatmeal!!?  Maybe it doesn't sound awful to most people, but I just hate the idea of chewy whole grains in my dessert.  Is it ironic that when I do eat oatmeal it's for breakfast, slow-cooked in whole milk and then drowned in butter, cream and honey?  Hmm.  Anyway, back to The Grey Plume.. the chamomile crème brulèe was amazing.  Everything about it was unexpected, like the fact that it was served in this huge, hand thrown clay bowl and included all manner of edible accoutrement that managed to bridge the gap between the delicate floral creaminess of the custard and the burnt, slice-the-roof-of-your-mouth-open character of the sugar.  I wish I had a photo.  Or could remember more details.  Already I am a bad blogger.  But you can see lots of gorgeous photos and learn more about The Grey Plume here.  The restaurant and its very cute owner/chef, Clayton Chapman, won accolades from Omaha Magazine in their recent "Best of Omaha" issue.  I would also like to add that the lovely hostess at The Grey Plume hands you cookies as you exit.  Which is the best thing ever if you're a six year old boy.  Or so I've been told.

Er.. where was I going with this?  California.  We take the train there!  As in AMTRAK!  The California Zephyr runs from Chicago to Emeryville, CA.  Emeryville is nestled betwixt Berkeley, Oakland and San Francisco Bay, and is home to Pixar animation studios and the National Holistic Institute (of which I am an alumnus).  I have lots of photos from our train trip, although unfortunately most of them look like this:

Colorado.  I swear.

Our first California excursion took place in September/October, and the aspen were unbelievably beautiful as we rode through Colorado and Utah.  Unfortunately a cheap camera, filthy train windows and unreasonably high speeds conspired against us in documenting said beauty.

We really did try, though!  Some efforts produced better results than others.  If I had any idea how to use modern photo editing software I could probably make these look okay...

Suffice to say that our time spent on the train was wonderful.  The California Zephyr is cheap and efficient and does not involve the Transportation Security Administration.  It's also the best excuse ever to do nothing besides sit and read/sleep/look out the window for two days.

We did things once we were in California.  I have pictures to prove it.  I will post some of those pictures after I post this.. post.  I'm not privy to the blogger jargon, I think.  I just want to be like Nancy Ondra, and it seems I have a long way to go.