Stepping Out the Door

Penny, David, and Benjamin Swank.  Three people that couldn't imagine the adventures they were about to experience.  This photo was taken at 5am Friday morning. It was a flurry of activity to get everything in the car and soon we were on our way.

Driving up to the airport we were planning on checking one bag that had liquids and the piano weights in it.  However, that was the plan before we saw the lines.  The line to check bags was going out the door at the airport.  Luckily we were able to toss the liquids, and reassigned the weight to my bag (Mr. Benjamin Swank) to even out the load.  we made it through security and jumped on our Southwest

flight.

We made a stop in the Las Vegas airport, and came away considerably richer than before (being experts at the slots) (not really) and flew down into the Burbank airport.  We were met by she-who-must-not-be-named.  We packed into her small mini and drove to her lovely home in Pasadena.  

It was a balmy 68 degrees and it was soon decided that we would take a trip to the Huntington Gardens, Mr. Huntington lived in the early 1900s and had quite a fortune from the railroad business.  He had a large mansion built and owned around 120 acres of property.  Somehow by some means it transformed into a botanical garden and that is what we strolled through Friday afternoon.

If you were unaware of this, the only reason my dad works as a groundskeeper at Principia is to race the other groundskeepers around in the small vehicles that carry equipment.  Upon seeing this character, his face lit up and demanded that a picture was taken so he could show his buddies the latest of "small equipment carrying racing vehicles". In reality we drove to the Huntington and started enjoying the excellent variety of fauna that graced the grounds.

My family enjoys acting out large carnivorous animals and today was no exception, I'm not quite sure what animals are seen here but you can decide that.  Please note the sunglasses in the center of the photo, for they will be seen later in the post.

(rare bamboo mammal spotted) Once in a lifetime event.  If you're lucky, you will never see it.

The growth of plants was pretty amazing.  We walked through the desert, got a preview of what Australia would look like, and Japan was graced with our presence.  We made a surprise stop in China and walked through the typical Californian garden.  It was a great experience and if the trip continues like this, then I have much to look forward to.  Next time I write I will probably be down under.  Ben Swank, signing out.  

Something to leave you with.