Okay, I'm down to the wire. It's now 3:20 am and the shuttle will pick me up in less than an hour. I'm glad I was able to sleep and especially, able to wake up with Ellen's two alarms.
Yesterday was a great send-off. Betty called early to tell me New Baby has changed her name to Scarlett Elizabeth--second name for Nana! Mike then called/cammed from Vegas. Ellen and I enjoyed seeing the gang from the Orient and were able to get a fleeting glimpse of Vivian, who announced that she had ridden the monorail. Mike showed us around by aiming the cam out the window at the ersatz "New York," "Egypt," and "Paris." He said Paula attended the trade show while he, Vivian, and Nanny Vickie hung out. They leave for San Diego to see Paula's father today, then fly back to Singapore.
E. and I then drove to Oxnard and caught the free shuttle to the Strawberry Festival. We hadn't been sure we'd go, but were so glad we did. It was a very warm, sunny, but no-humidity day, my favorite kind of weather, and was such fun. We exclaimed over the Budweiser Clydesdale horses--incredibly huge, seemingly docile (you can never trust a horse) and looking just as they do in pictures--in barred stalls near the entrance. We browsed the booths, gulped at the bungee jumpers, then headed for the food area. I easily decided this would be my splurge day, then had to choose from an embarrassment of riches: spread out before us was practically every food known to man--all deep-fried and decadent, of course, but oh, so good. I finally selected Italian sausage with peppers and onions, and washed it down with an icy-cold Coors Light. Polished off every morsel, then topped it with "make your own" strawberry shortcake. It was so crowded we had to eat standing up next to a recycle container and near a regular trash and I was amazed to realize the whole area would have been buzzing with yellow jackets in Jersey, but there wasn't a bug in sight while we were there.
We got home about 3:00, put on our suits, and spent the rest of the gloriously sunny day in the pool. Dinner for me was just veggies--I had enough calories at lunch to last six weeks--and we just passed a quiet evening.
Now I have to go. I love California, love my daughter, and love my life, complicated as it can sometimes be. Jersey, here I come!