• Brenda Sallee
  • Brenda Sallee

Brenda’s solo trip to PA

Long awaited trip to see my brother and sister inlaw Read more
  • Trip start
    August 27, 2024
  • Denver airport

    August 27, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    Real nice airport. Never knew there was this open air area.
    I have a nice cushion before I board to PA.
    I did have issues connecting my headphones with Bluetooth to seat back screen. I will try again on this leg.Read more

  • Camp Olympic Park Disc Golf Course

    August 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    This is a great 18-hole course. They make some of the baskets tricky with obstacles out by suspending them. Holes are not very long, but I played pretty poorly. It was also very humid. I think the heat index made it feel like close to 90°.
    I struggled mostly with being tired. There were some hills but I think it was mostly the stifling humidity. I also was getting dizzy and light headed a lot. I need to bring more water and a snack next time.
    My brother played his best round yet on that course.
    This course was about an hour away.
    Today is supposed to be hottest.
    Read more

  • Mercer Musuem, Bucks Co

    August 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 93 °F

    We saw the Doan Gang exhibit and the regular museum.
    Mercer built these buildings to hold all his collections. He collected tools and devices of the old world. He saw the transition to more modern processes and wanted to preserve the old. They are all chronicled by task. There is a room for leather making, shoe making, hat making, wood carving, etc. I only took pictures of some of the different rooms. The video is to give you an idea of how much stuff is in there…all the way to the ceiling. It was pretty cool.
    The Doan part was okay. They were a gang of British sympathizers in Bucks County area who were basically outlaws. They spied for the British before and during the Revolutionary war. They robbed people and used to money to help support the Brits. They would also intercept mail. I liked the main museum best.
    Plus - Steve and Lisa had a membership so I got in free as a guest.
    Read more

  • O Wow Cow Creamery

    August 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 93 °F

    We stopped here on the way home from museum. It is Top 10 in country and number 1 in PA.
    They had many unusual flavors and some traditional ones. I tried to get photo of them all but you may not be able to see the names. I tried a sample of the mango chili lime and off the buttered corn flavors. The former was good. At first you taste a hint of chili and spice, then the mango and lime. The spice dissipated right away. The later flavor was okay. Tasted more butter than corn. In end I got a scoop of the Summer Fruit Tart. Steve got the Raspberry Truffle, and Lisa got Carmel Cashew. Everyone really liked the flavor they picked.
    I asked if it was a chain. They said there are a few around the region. Everything is locally sourced and organic too.
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  • Sedgley Woods Disc Golf, Philadelphia

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F

    Today we went to play at Sedgley Woods. It is in Fairmount Park which is like the Central Park of Philadelphia.
    It is the oldest permanent disc golf course on the East Coast, and one of the oldest in the world. It was established in 1977. The oldest in the world is Grand Oaks in LA, CA, established in 1975.
    They had a token old basket there, but thankfully they were not like that in the course. They did have older baskets without bands on top though; but they were normal size. Tee pads were bit short for me, so I had to adjust some stuff.
    I played better than yesterday, but not great. My putts improved, but forehands got worse. And, the trees in PA just seem to love me. ❤️
    We saw lots of squirrels and chipmunks in the course, and even a stray cat. I got a + 17.
    Weather was better and I brought a snack and more water, so I held out much better today. Plus the course was relatively flat compared to yesterday.
    Good par 3 course though.
    Read more

  • New England Obsevations

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 82 °F

    I often forget how old things really are here. I love looking at all the old houses made of brick or stone. Very colonial looking. These may not be the best examples, but I’ll see if I can get more.
    Also the roads are so narrow in many spots. Just fits a big pick up truck.
    I also forgot about the biting insects. Yes, they have mosquitoes, but they also have biting gnats. I have a few bites on me. I’m sure they were on the look out for some non local blood. 🩸 🩸 🦟
    I have also noticed that folks have huge lawns here, and most keep them mowed.
    And I did not forget about the humidity, but forgot how it really felt.
    Tomorrow there is supposed to be rain, so not sure what the plan is.
    Read more

  • Peddler’s Village

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 79 °F

    This afternoon e went to Peddler’s Village. It’s a band of shops basically but of course the buildings all look like colonial style.
    The grounds were very pretty with flowers and a resident butterfly.
    We went to see the sandcastle displays. There were only a few. Lisa said there were far more last year.
    So we just walked around mostly and popped in a few shops. Then we went to dinner which was walking distance for Steve and I, Lisa drove.
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  • Caleb’s Restaurant

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    This is Steve’s favorite restaurant. He took us all out for dinner tonight. We both got the seared Chilian sea bass, and Lisa has a salad.
    We had crusty baguette with dipping oil too. All was good. Oh, I did eat the 🌺 on my plate too. Nothing special about it.
    Steve also has an appetizer of crab, smoked Gouda “cheesecake” (savory, served hot, looks like a pie wedge).
    We had dessert after. Mixed berry crumble was mine. It was okay. Mostly blueberries and virtually no crumble.
    Steve had a honey cake with shortbread cookie.
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  • Bike race

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    Watched Tour of Spain race on tv with my brother. Very helpful because he answered lots of questions and explained other things. Example, top 3 riders will rotate positions of 1-2-3 so they can stay ahead of the peloton. They are all on different teams. But when real close to end, all help is off. They have signals the give to indicate when they need one to take the front. The stick their elbow out.Read more

  • Bucks County PA bike ride

    August 30, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    We had great weather. It had just rained overnight, so was overcast and about 67-70°.
    We went about 13.5 miles and it took 1.5 hrs. There were some hills which I am not used to in Corvallis. I had to use my low gears a lot. I only had to get off the bike once at the very top of a hill I couldn’t quite make. So I am really proud of myself.
    My brother’s new bike is quite spiffy and crazy light. He could have blown me away, but of course he didn’t.
    We went through a mix of neighborhoods and park trails. Not much time on busy roads. The park settings were lush forests and streams, or beautiful open meadows. We even had to stop for geese to cross.
    My right knee might feel the brunt of this. Just not used to the torque. But should be okay soon. Yay Friends.
    I attached the map of where we went too.
    I think the last time Steve and I went on a bike ride together was when they lived in their other house about 15+ yrs ago.
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  • Alexandria Park disc golf course, NJ

    August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    My last day here in PA. 😢 We went to Alexandria course about an hour away. It was a really pretty drive. We went over the Delaware River into the cutest little town of Frenchtown. It was so little I didn’t have time to get a good picture. I have found that it is very pretty country here, and all drives are pretty with lush countryside. I put another old building pic and another observation on the earlier footprint.

    The disc golf went much better today. I actually got single digit +9! 😳 There were fewer trees on the holes, but I found the ones I did hit gave me favorable kicks. So obviously trees in NJ love ❤️ me in a different way than the PA trees 😖.
    Weather was not as cool as yesterday, but not as hot as Wednesday. No wind at all.
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  • End of my Last Day

    August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

    I’m about to go to bed and get up at 4:30am to get ready for airport.
    I’ve had such a good visit. I’m so glad to have had this time with Steve and Lisa. It was nice to not have to share the time with others. We had some good conversations about everything from our high school days to music we listen to.
    Lisa was too tired or had to work to join in the disc golf or biking, but I got some conversations with her too.
    I’m glad to have some time to get to know her a bit better. We even did some crossword puzzles together. She showed me the quilt fabric she picked out for Liam’s quilt.
    It has been 6 yrs since I’ve been here, and maybe 20 since being here alone.
    I’m very emotional about leaving. The next several months are going to be really hard on them. I wish we lived closer. I don’t know what things will be like the next time I come here, but I hope they will be okay. It is always hard to leave my family because I never really know when I will see them again, but it seems especially hard now. 😢
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  • PHL AIRPORT

    September 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    Early morning. I’m here in plenty of time though. My brother and I had good talk on way to airport. It was hard to say good bye, but was great visit. I got out of it what I wanted and expected.
    Unexpected surprises were how I enjoyed just looking at the scenery on our drives and bike ride, and how seeing Lisa triggered some memories of my experiences, struggles and frustrations when I was getting treatment.
    You would think that having gone through cancer treatment I would know what to do or say all the time to people in treatment. I think to a limited extent, I do. However, it was a good reminder that every person is an individual and you really can’t know how that person feels or what they need without asking. This is true of every person in every situation…just a good reminder about communication and shared experiences.

    I decided to treat myself to an egg sandwich for breakfast before my long journey home.

    I’m looking forward to seeing David and Zazzy again.
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  • Back in OR

    September 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    Flight home was uneventful and luckily barely had any HJs. Just waiting for bag, David is picking me up… then will be less than an hour from home. ❤️
    I miss my brother and Lisa already though.

    Trip end
    September 1, 2024