Mrs. Gorn Goes to Washington

First time for me to our nation's Capital! Finally! And very impressive. It was an impacting, quick trip, and a bit challenging with the 4-hour time difference from Alaska. I definitely felt like I belonged to and represented an American place far far removed from the stately buildings, powerful tones and go-get-em pace I sensed around me.

I flew in pretty late and could spot the Washington Monument and Capital alit from the airplane coasting into Reagan National. I haven't been

awed and impressed like that in quite some time. Did Dan Brown and his Lost Symbol cross my mind? Possibly!

The reason for going, thanks to work, was a National Leadership Forum in National Harbor, MD, just south of the main D.C. hub bubs. It was a long shot last fall, but I submitted two proposals to present during the break-out workshops. One of two was accepted and so began the preparation, work and trip planning to participate.

CADCA focuses on coalition work to build drug-free communities. I learned in federal town

hall meetings, right from the head of the Drug Enforcement Agency, Assistant Secretary of Health for the Department of Health and Human Services, and others, about concerning substance abuse trends in the U.S. Ever hear of "Bath Salts?" In Alaska I hadn't, but it's the new hallucinative item for teens to abuse. Prescription medication abuse is the DEA's biggest concern nationally, as well as states legalizing medical marijuana. I especially cheered the head of NIDA proclaiming prevention work must be culturally-relevant! Hurray-that's what we do and strive to do well. My presentation also went well and I felt it was a full room of engaged folks. A nice gentlemen introduced himself before I started. He just wanted to say that he chose my session because he and his wife have their first trip to AK planned in May and he figured he could learn a couple of things before heading our way!

The impressive and massive Gaylord Convention Center and hotel which hosted the conference.

This view is from my hotel room, where I stayed elsewhere to save a few shekels.

I really enjoyed what I learned at this conference with 2,799 other participants. I was glad to connect with a Nome acquaintance, now working in Bethel. Rahnia and I hooked up for company and exploration during the short week. Also, I had plenty of convo time to learn about impressive work from my fellow Alaskan. Thanks Rahnia!

We had an "interim" day in the week and used it to explore a small piece of our American history. A tour of the Capitol was so interesting and not busy given the time of year to visit.

Images from the Rotunda--"out of many, one."

History and modern times combine, below

So here's my funny story from that day. Rahnia and I land at the Smithsonian Castle after much walking. We warm up, rest our feet, check our phones and then I make my way to a friendly volunteer regarding which Museum to visit for the next few hours. He goes through the options and I'm thinking "American History Museum." Before walking away, decided, I ask the older man, "Do I get my tickets here or over at the Museum?" He replies with a hint of a smile, "Do you pay taxes?" Confused I say yes and then he sticks out his hand to shake mine, and with a full smile, proclaims: "Congrats! The Smithsonian is free!" Jokes on me! I never suspected such amazing property was available to the public absolutely free. I figured I'd just pony up the $30 for the two hours available us. We all laughed as my face burned red. I guess we get something for taxes after all! haha! We conquered American History and ducked into Natural History too for a glimpse at the Hope Diamond. Incredible thing about this time of year is the lack of people. No lines, no crowds.

Which made my second viewing of the Smithsonian's Ruby Slippers a bit anti-climatic. As we know, my fave movie, The Wizard of Oz, made several pairs of the slippers for Judy Garland/Dorothy. I had quite the ordeal back in the fall of 1996 (following the performance of our school musical's Sunday matinee) to view those same slippers in St. Paul. If you want the story, just ask and I'll elaborate. This second viewing was simpler, required less creativity and energy, but was just as special to see. (someday I'll branch out and eyeball one of the other existing shoes.) As for seeing the rest of our nation's Capital, well.....it's high on our destination list, sans work. Another highlight was reconnecting, too briefly, with my high school friend, Ben, at an Irish pub! Benny and I have been in many theatre productions together in our young days, and often our families carpooled to get us to rehearsals before we got drivers' licenses. You can enjoy Ben's blog linked on our site as "Ben's Talking Pictures." So this trip triggered quite a bit of personal history with collective history. Pretty nifty how that intertwines.

*Amy

XLV

I am spoiled. After the Packers won the NFC championship game I received a telephone call from Tom inquiring if I'd be in on a trip to Dallas for the Super Bowl. A couple of phone calls later, I was granted leave (which I didn't think would be allowed, thanks Sgt.) and the plan was set in motion for Tom, Tony, and I to meet in Dallas for the biggest Packer game in 14 years.

Have I mentioned yet that I'm spoiled. Lets be honest here, this wouldn't have happened w/o Tom being overly generous. I'll take it. Sweet.

The trip kicked off with a Friday afternoon flight from Sitka, AK. I happened to find Tony at SEATAC and we quickly enjoyed a Sam Adams. Cool. Sometimes life is more than fair. An hour later Tony and I were on the plane for Dallas which arrived just before midnight. Tom scooped us up and we settled into the hotel with good conversation and some choice beverages. The clock seemed to get away from us, but that was just fine, it's Super Bowl weekend. I found it funny that as the clock nears 0400 my brother decided it was a good idea to drink a Mountain Dew, eat cheese curds, and squeeze in just one more beef stick. G2 is awesome.

On Saturday we scoped out the route to the Stadium, stopped at the International Bowling Museum & Hall of Fame, and walked around downtown Dallas. I guess the city had a bit of a Super Bowl XLV vibe going on as evidenced by the more than life size murals.

When the evening arrived we indulged in an unbelievable steak dinner. I of course went with an overly large ribeye and a pint of Guiness. Perfect. According to our waitress, Aaron Rodgers (Packers QB) ate at the same restaurant on Friday evening. Thanks again Tom.

Sunday morning the excitement level really hit. I just didn't understand how cool it was going to be watching a Packer's Super Bowl.....live, at the stadium. But before we could make ourselves head into the Stadium we needed to fuel ourselves with a Bloody Mary, chased by a cold one, while watching Wisconsin Badger basketball (victorious). This really was going to be a good day, it just couldn't have started any better.

After drumming up a quick game involving drawing random team names from a hat, throwing a large bill into the hat to keep it interesting, and hoping for the best, the three of us walked into the Stadium, minus some cash in our pocket.

The stadium is huge, new, and very nice. The Texas Ranger's stadium is just to our right out of the picture.

Tom really outdid himself when getting our seats. Very cool. We were 16 rows up from the corner of the Pittsburgh end zone.

For some reason I was really interested in what food and beverage would cost at the SuperBowl so I photographed one of two menus for a good laugh. I was surprised to see that a 16 oz beer was $10 and not more. If you are wondering, yes, I ate too many hot dogs. These dogs were tasty, but dogs at the Brewer game are better, you just can't beat Stadium Sauce.

Before we knew it the game had started and we were cheering on the Pack. As we all know, the game was more than fantastic. Our vantage point was great and this picture does not do our view justice. The Packer win was great, but time with Tom and Tony was worth more to me.

If you are wondering, I did take home the money from the hat. Luck was on my side on Super Bowl Sunday.

Sweethearts

Of course we enjoyed a day dedicated to expressions and feelings of love---Valentine;s is special for us as we became engaged on Valentine's two years ago, and this was our first in marriage. From the humorous to the touching we had little surprises for each other. While I was at a noon meeting, Andy came home for lunch and found a chocolate fish that was "caught but not released." He sent me a photo to say he liked it.While back home to work in the afternoon I was surprised by a van stopping by with this purple collection of flowers.I looked forward to starting Cupid's day on the radio spinning an hour's worth of love songs. No, no Celine Dion and "The Power of Love," but classics by Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Duke E., Sinatra and more. Even The Avett Brothers and The Cure made the lovely cut. For dinner we created a special menu together: Emmentaler Cheese Fondue with caramelized shallots and red velvet cupcakes for dessert. Simple, delicious and savored. Our lifestyle and schedule in Sitka certainly affords us quality time with each other...which sort of makes every day Valentine's Day! Also makes our first year-plus together as a couple, spent long-distance from Nome to Anchorage, all worth it.

A Red, Red Rose

Robert Burns

O my luve's like a red, red rose,

That's newly sprung in June;

O my luve's like the melodie

That's sweetly played in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,

So deep in luve am I;

And I will luve thee still, my dear,

Till a' the seas gang dry.

Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,

And the rocks melt wi' the sun:

O I will luve thee still, my dear,

When the sands o' life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only luve,

And fare thee well awhile;

And I will come again, my luve,

Though it were ten thousand mile.

*Amy

Cheeseheads

Considering the Packers play in the Superbowl on Sunday and Andy leaves for the game in a day and half, you'd think this "Cheesehead" post is about football fans.

Andy had a short meeting to make in Wasilla this week and I wouldn't let the opportunity for 3 free airline bags pass us up. He kindly brought an empty cooler and checked my list at Sam's Club. Pretty easy....meat and cheese...a chance to bring home a cache of chilled items within a few hours. Well, Andy is a provider, and clearly hails from the Midwest, because these beauties are sitting in our fridge.

I must be from the Midwest too given my approval!

(I wonder how often I write about dairy here.)

Anyway, meet the gang:

1.35 lb Wisconsin Aged Cheddar Cheese,

1.75 lb Dubliner (one our FAVES & imported from Ireland),

1.76 lb Three Alarm colby jack cheese ("intense pepper flavor"),

.77 lb Gruyere (perfect for fondue),

and the heavyweight is a whooping 2.01 lbs of Jarlsberg.

I can tell we're maturing given our tastes and exploration in cheese varieties. Despite a bias for the Dubliner, my guess is the Three Alarm will come out on top. Maybe we'll make it a "cheesy" Valentine's Day this year and stare into each other's eye across the fondue pot!

All I know is I'm gonna need a lot of wine to do this collection justice.

As for the Cheeseheads? Well, they tend to find each other.

*Amy