Hello Long Beach, California



Mt. Whitney


I got up on Tuesday morning at 3:00am because I just couldn’t wait to finish Vertical. Ironically, the last line in the book is a quote from Miles….”Let’s Go Home”. So, I got myself together, packed up the car, and stood before Mt. Whitney, as the sun was rising over it. Majestic.

At 6:00am, Highway 395 was wide open……finally….I tried out warp speed! Fun, fun, fun! I connected to Highway 14 and soon I came upon the hundreds and hundreds of power windmill turbine structures that are symmetrically aligned on the hill side. I thought about Randy and how he would talk about this mode of power and his plans for us to go solar. I thought of how with each year he is gone, so much of what I called “Randyisms” make so much sense. As we grow older, we do grow wiser.

Warp Speed brought me into LA morning traffic before I knew it. Ugh! Thankfully, I was able to listen to Mark and Brian (and you know how much I love Mark and Brian). They eased my transition into LA. By 10:00ish, I rolled into Long Beach. I love Long Beach. The weather was just a bit overcast but when I saw the Queen, I was relieved to be home.

The Pike

Belmont Pier

I pulled into the driveway and was greeted by a fully bloomed Aurora Gold Sunflower, next to my favorite blooming Ring of Fire. I am happy to report that the garden did get watered in my absence.

This trip was relaxing and quite reflective. I thought about my children and the paths they have taken. The experiences we were able to give our sons have  set some healthy foundations and I know we gave the boys a deep seeded appreciation for nature.

So after 930 miles of traveling alone, I am home, and my first task….clean the kitchen. "There's no place like home!"

Aurora Gold

Ring of Fire

This will be my final blog post for Frances Takes Another Vacation. I am looking forward to next years vacation and will keep you all posted on my plans. Thanks to all my friends and faithful blog followers who supported me along in this journey. I love our great state of California and I hope my travels have encouraged you to visit some of the places I have been. I am fortunate to be a native Californian and a California lover. So, until next year….Just Do It All!

California Lover