MY BLOG

California- AMAZING!

Well, I guess 6 months is more than enough time to ignore this blog!  

Top of the catch-up list... In February, Eddie and I spent 10 fabulous days in California! Although the weather was less than ideal, we were thrilled to have the opportunity to connect two of his Jazz Festival gigs with a scenic ride on the PCH from SanDiego to Monterey.  I can now say I understand why so many people want to live in California!  Earthquakes... shmirthquakes!

I know this looks like painted scenery, but it's very real and oh so beautiful!

We had a lovely home cooked dinner by the fireplace and an overnight visit with friends, Dick And Johann at their amazing home in Emerald Bay.  This was taken on their porch... what a view! 

I just loved this tree! I could not get enough photographs of the unique and different foliage along the way.

Rooftop view of Santa Barbara taken on top of the beautiful, historic courthouse there where our friends Janie and Joe got married. 

Had to take this picture on their spot for them.

Good day for surfers and seagulls, I guess.

Not exactly the best weather for us and the scenic drive we'd so been looking forward to.

Still... the most amazing vistas appeared around every corner along the way. 

Lunch stop at Nepenthe in Big Sur.  Fabulous view but a $6.00 glass of iced tea? Oh yeah, we are in California!

A bright spot in the weather begins to open up on the way to Monterey.

My two favorite Eddies!  An overnighter at our talented and dear friend Eddie Erickson's before we spend our final weekend at the Monterey Jazz Festival.

Cold and rainy day but we ventured out any way to take the 17 mile drive through Pebble Beach to Carmel.

Only my brave, fearless husband would climb down a cliff to get some real pebblesfor me from Pebble Beach!  Save those chops, Eddie Metz... you have music to play!

The famous Lone Cypress tree at Pebble Beach.  There were actually three guys playing golf just beyond the next turn. Burrrrrrrr!

Carmel - the beautiful streets and lovely, expensive boutiques and restaurants. We had a magnificent dinner at Il Fornaio - what a treat!

 I could spend a day here exploring all the fabulous art galleries! Maybe next time.

This is Monterey harbor where the festival is held.  Now that our time is almost up, the sun is out!  

The natural inhabitants of the harbor just hanging around.

Finally... the love of my life doing what he does best!  Thank you, baby for taking me along for the ride!  Where are we going next?

 

 

 

 

 

Let The Adventure Begin!

I have no idea where half of March and all of April went, but I have been a very bad blogger, indeed!  Today I am off to meet my honey in Amsterdam for a fabulous trip mixing work with a lot of pleasure.  Well, I won't be working and really if Eddie tells you he's working, don't buy it.  I can't call beating on the drums work!  I will be painting and sketching, though and I really can't wait to being this adventure.  We are so very, very fortunate and ever so grateful!

Anyway, we are going to keep in touch via our travel blog so feel free to check in now and then to see what we are up to!

Take Good Care,

The Last Frontier

ALASKA! 

In spite of our sadness at learning of Dad's passing, we boarded the ship, surrounded by friends and fans of both Ed Metz, Sr. and  Ed Metz, Jr , who shared our pain.  We had our moments of tears and pangs of guilt, wishing we were with the rest of the family, but knowing Dad would have wanted Eddie to honor his contract, we made the best of this wonderful trip.  Here are a few highlights from the Jazzdagen/Arbors 2009 Alaskan cruise aboard the beautiful Regent Seven Seas Mariner.  We started in Anchorage, then went on to Seward, Sitka, Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and ended in Vancouver, Canada.  A bittersweet trip we shall never forget.

In keeping with tradition, here is our "Here we are" photo taken from the top deck of the ship.  It was cold but a pleasant reprieve from the Florida heat.  We were blessed with sunny weather for the most part.  The scenery is beyond breathtaking.  We felt so small.

Good friend's Susan and Bill Allred and the Hubbard Glacier.

Looks like painted scenery, doesn't it? 

The amazing view from our cabin balcony.

Well this doesn't suck... having your coffee here every morning.  

Of course, there was work to do...

okay, Eddie Metz, do you really call this work?

Sharing a coke with best buddy Tom Hook... Hey didn't you old guys used to drink something else?

This is a typical view of a port on an Alaskan cruise.  Much to my amazement, Susan actually spotted my "Tea Party" collection in a gift shop here in this quaint little town of Skagway! 

We were on a whale watching excursion, so I missed the sighting,  but got to see lots of whales and other wildlife from the surrounding wilderness. 

Okay, it was a little on the freezing cold side out there on the water, but so worth it to see these amazing animals jump out of the water right before our eyes!  For a while we kept alongside a mom and her baby.  Her tail might not appear to be that large in this photo, but comparability speaking, these humpback whales are the size of a greyhound bus!  So glad Eddie caught this shot of her tail right after she crested.

Speaking of wildlife....

This happy group whom we refer to as the "Wolf Pack", bought out the ship's inventory on these exotic jackets.  Mat and Rachel Domber, Pug and Bob Wilber - aren't they stylin'?

By the end of the cruise, they even got Eddie in one.  Personally, I think they are ladies jackets, but my manly man looks very G.Qish... don't you think?

In Ketchikan we took a beautiful ride on the White Pass & Yukon Railroad.  The scenery was breathtaking... again, we are reminded just how small we are.

We tell ourselves DAILY, how fortunate we are.  To share such a great life together.  To go through the good times and tough times hand in hand...all the while enjoying careers we love. How did that happen?  Life is good and we are blessed.

"What A Wonderful World"... oh yeah.

P.S.  While we did get a glimpse of the governor's mansion in Juneau, even with binoculars, somehow we just weren't able to see Russia. (?)


Mold update tomorrow :~)

Hey, somebody's got to do it

It's a tough job, but somebody's got to accompany this man on these gigs.  This one was the Jazzfest At Sea cruise. We were lucky enough to take time out for some much needed R & R on November 1st.  Eddie works, I sit.  And eat... and sit.... and eat.....

We cruised along the Western Caribbean which is not too exciting.  Most of the ports along that route are very poor, third world countries.  Sometimes we don't even disembark.  But we did get off in Key West which is always fun and also Costa Maya where I enjoyed the shopping area full of colorful painted pottery.  Love these sunny faces!

Admit it... you want him, girls, but back off... he's all mine!


I know it is unbelievable... completely unfathomable.. but I am preparing for yet another one due to set sail on Sunday, November 30 from Los Angeles.  This one is a Jazzdagen tour on the S.S. Crystal Symphony.  We will surely have a flood of memories when we step foot on that gorgeous vessel.  It was the same ship we sailed on for the ill-fated "Greek Tragedy" in June of 2007.  Knowing my husband, tears will be shed.

The "Hip" Parade

Seems like a fitting title for this post.  Yesterday marked the anniversary of what Eddie and I fondly refer to as our "Greek Tragedy".  As I often do, I never got around to noticing the date until late afternoon, but all day I found myself in a sort of melancholy mood with this underlying tone that this was some sort of "special day."  By evening I realized what "it" was and was happily toasting the one year anniversary of my hip surgery with some friends at an art festival cocktail party.  As I recounted the events I shed a few tears and thought about a lot of memories, but mostly felt grateful for my good fortune and a pretty full recovery. There are no words to describe the closeness and love that my wonderful husband Eddie and I share together which saw us through a pretty difficult situation.  He is presently away in Italy but he told me in a phone conversation that he also shed some tears as he reflected on the events of this time last year.

To be brief, Eddie was booked to play on this fabulous 3 week jazz cruise docking in several Greek Islands and  beautiful ports around the Mediterranean, ending in Venice on the luxury Crystal Cruise ship, the MS. Serenity.  The cruise of a lifetime... with a paycheck!  What more could any one ask for?! While in Athens Greece, two days before we were to set sail, I took a fall after dinner and fractured my femur just below the hip. I ended up having surgery the next day in a hospital in Athens and I now have to stop for the wand treatment every time I go through security airport.  I have a plate with screws attached to my femur with another kind of metal screw thing going into my hip joint.  Not a day goes by that I don't feel some kind of "reminder" but I am so grateful to be able to walk and for the care I received while so far away in a foreign country.  It's much too long a story to repeat in a post, but we did end up going aboard, not once, but twice and Eddie got to fulfill his contract while I recovered in the lap of luxury with our good friends from the band.  We truly are so blessed.

I somehow feel the need to mark the time on my blog today so here are a few memories. 

Here we are... our first exciting day climbing the ruins in Athens.  I seem to have no problem climbing rocks...just walking on streets!

My view from the Athens Hospital.  There's always a silver lining... at least I was able to enjoy my favorite artist, Matisse!

 

My happy husband on the ferry that took us to meet the ship in Mycanos

"MS Crystal Serenity"... that's me!  On board for the second time.

Reunited with the band... good times ahead, after all :~)

I could not get off the ship at too many of the ports because the ancient cities could not accommodate the wheelchair, but I really enjoyed this day sitting on the back deck sketching the beautiful town of Sorrento.  This was a bittersweet day, as I have fond memories of my Dad, who would sit patiently as I practiced the piano. His parents were Italian immigrants. "Back to Sorrento" was his favorite request as he would sing along in Italian. I miss him terribly, but I know he was with me on this special day, guiding my hand as I sketched this beautiful countryside - home to his ancestors, which he never got to see.

 

Just another chapter in the life of this lucky and happy couple!