Is this the LockSAW?

Pintler Loop

On the way to Hamilton, MT we stopped to stretch at George Lake. We took the scenic Pintler loop.

Remains of the Gods and Godesses

It makes me happy to think of original folk living in pockets around Europe. The Seto people are alive and fighting for a way of life that was extinguished so many Christmases ago. The BBC has a beautiful photograph collection of the Seto people.

Nevada City, Montana

We went to Virginia City and Nevada City today. It was lovely. Little bit could not have been more delightful. He was happy and bubbly and friendly to all the other tourists. Lunch even went well. He actually fell asleep on the train back from Nevada City to Virginia City. He fights falling asleep in the car, but here he just cuddled up to me and was out. My god I love that boy. I have a photo set over at flickr.com/bellemanda of Nevada City.

boo!

We are going to Virginia City, Montana today! It is an active ghost town. We love ghost towns and there are lots in Montana. I will bring back some photos. The main reason we are going is that my son loves trains and we get to ride one there! All the way from Virginia City to Nevada City. AND at Nevada City there is an operating NICKELODEON! Even the kind that you look into and if flips cards to show you the morality tale of a sailor on leave in a cat house.


What Montana ghost town would be complete without a museum of curiosities? Virginia City buried a group called "Henry Plummer and the Road Agents" on boot hill. To prove it was the famous group they dug them up a few years later to retrieve "Club-Foot George's" identifying feature. So that feature is mummified on a shelf in a museum. It is right next to the plaque about finding dead mummified cats under houses because the Chinese thought it was good luck.

I love little known facts like that. And I love little museums in little towns.

Man of La Mancha on Broadway

The only time I visited New York, NY was on a day trip while visiting my step fathers mother in Old Tappan, NJ. I thought the city was a fun place but scary too. While in Old Tappan I went to the grocery store and all the ladies with carts drove very aggressively. I was a 15 year old just trying to get some space from the old lady smell of my step grandmother's and moved slowly to see if they had different shampoo. They didn't but my lackadaisical Oregon ass moved way to slow for the New Jersey house girls.

I have always loved art and museums. I begged to go to the MOMA. They offered a Circus with animals preforming. I objected as I felt the elephants were not treated well. If I knew of such things like Cirque de Soliel they could not have kept me away, but I don't think it was around 15 years ago.

I did get to go to a '2 for' matinee on Broadway. It was Man of La Mancha. Dulcinea looked a little old and stiff kneed. I thought it was because you get what you pay for and they put the old Broadway actors out to pasture in the 2 for 1 matinees. I liked the experience. My family also made sure I got to taste real bagels and real pizza. I love that thin flat cheese pizza best to this day. Bagels in Montana are just rolls with holes in the middle. They are not chewy or soft in the middle. They are uniform consistency just like a roll. Even in Oregon they had bagels that resembled the beautiful creations I had in New York that summer. Ruined me.

I remember it was Hot there in August and my step grandmother's pancake foundation began to melt as we waited for tickets. I thought it was startling to realize someone could actually melt. I wore a bright red flower sun dress. I had men yell at me. This was shocking as Oregon men had never yelled at me. I took it as a compliment I guess. I think I walked a little closer to my mother. By the time I had my senior trip 2 years later in Paris and London I had enough attitude on me to confidently walk down the street. I was lucky as I choose to walk down the street at 2 am away from the group that decided to experiment with pot with a strange french man. I suppose that is a story for a post about a different city.