Chiming In

August 2013.  One of my mother's outside decorations.

During this summer, Karin and I took a bi-coastal trip to visit our family and friends.  First, from Portland, OR, we went to Los Angeles, CA, where Karin's parents live.  After spending a little less than a week there, we took a red eye flight from LA to Newark, NJ - a mostly sleepless endeavor from one end of the country to another.  From there, my mother, her friend, Karin and I went to a diner for breakfast, then back to my mother's house in Toms River, NJ, which took a few hours on top of our flight.  We spent around a week in New Jersey before going to New York (Long Island) for a few days, to spend some time with some of my old college friends.