mid-summer nights dream

i had a dream right before i woke up this morning so i remember it pretty well. the wife and i were flying in a hot air balloon, presumably from where we live in minnesota, to the east coast. i remember approaching new york city, seeing the tall buildings and central park down below. the statue of liberty was just off in the distance. when we attempted to turn around and return home we had some sort of mechanical problem and ended up landing on coney island. it gets a little fuzzy after that. according to dreammoods.com, the hot air balloon may mean:

To see or dream that you are in a hot air balloon, suggests that it is time to overcome your depression. The dream may be a metaphor indicating that you are losing your ground or your foothold on some situation/problem. Alternatively, it represents the process of? individuation and your quest to fulfill some spiritual needs. You feel the need to be elevated in someone's eyes.

hmmm...maybe, maybe not...

i hope this doesn't have some sort of obvious meaning or symbolize something embarrasing in my life or about my mental psyche that i've now just made public. any dream interpreters out there??
on a completely unrelated note, the family is heading over to the slice of shoreview tonight. playing in a softball tournament in shakopee tomorrow. more later.

all things considered, the price's had a really good summer 2007 vacation. that's how I remember it, and that's how it's going down. we swam, we cooked out, we went to town, we dined out, we went to multiple parks, we had bonfires & 'smores, i golfed, i fished (yes, and actually caught a 6" sunnie), i completed two books ("left for dead" by beck weathers, and "perfect i'm not" by david wells) etc. this time around the cabin had a microwave oven, and a 13" tv which received one channel and we immediately unplugged. on a tip from a local, i learned that a cell phone signal could be achieved by turning left at the gas station, proceeding down the road a quarter mile, crossing a bridge, and going up to the top of a hill on a gravel road, standing on one leg while wearing an aluminum foil hat and facing the north. it could be noted, however, that this years getaway was not without it's challenges. sunday morning about 4:30 am, we are rattled out of bed by a wicked storm. suddenly, all hail breaks loose and we start to hear object banging and rattling off the roof of our cabin. a look out the window confirms large, jagged hunks of ice falling out of the sky and bouncing off of our car like enormous popcorn kernels. i survey the damage later in the morning and sure enough, the car has been dinged-up pretty good. there was nothing i could do but make my way over to the golf course and get in my first 9 of 36 holes. i was able to catch 7 innings of this years mlb baseball all-star game, at the new parkview resort...a first for me while vacationing at twin lakes. we made a couple of trips into town for dinner (once at the very popular "ambassador") and visits with allie's relatives. we also visited mclain state park and walked the beaches of lake superior.the weather was warm & sunny at the beginning, cooler and cloudier towards the end of the week. all in all, a relaxing week and a great time. i'm sure we'll be back in a couple three years. the pics are here.

1909-2007

Margaret DeWeese, a.k.a. our "granny", has gone on to live with the Lord in her eternal home in heaven. Granny lived a long and fulfilling life and will be dearly missed on earth by her friends and family. Her health has been faltering in recent years but we will always remember her as a remarkably vibrant and outgoing lady. We all have many great memories of all of the stories she shared with us over the years. This woman has truly touched all of our lives! We take comfort in knowing that she is now at peace.

it's time to get away...

preparations for price family vacation 07 to twin lakes resort are wrapping up. it's been 3 years since our last visit to twin lakes (see pics). the plan is to leave bright and semi-early tomorrow am. i have much to do between now and then, including tying up a few loose ends at work, and packing up the wagon. as mentioned, cell ph. coverage will be spotty at best during the next week, which is not all bad.
it's funny how leaving your home to reside in a much smaller structure, with less amenities, no ac, phone, dishwasher, washing machine or television is considered a form of relaxation, but we do love it. this is as close to "roughing it" as i ever want to be. the plus side is your are right on the lake with a private beach area, you grill out at least once a day, campfires at night, get out on a boat, and i get to plant potentially dozens of golf balls in the high grass and woods of wyandotte golf course. i'm taking my antiquated fishing gear and plan to wet a line a few times. hopefully, i won't catch anything so i don't have to try to remove the hook from some poor fish's mouth. we'll see. the weather looks good for the most part, not extremely hot and a chance for a few showers during the week.

looking forward to a great trip, minus the lengthy car trip with the kids. it's possible, but not probable, that i publish a text-only post from my blackberry sometime during the week. post vacation coverage with pics on or around the 15th.

signing off for now!

independence day festivities...

while normal people are settling in on their blankets to enjoy the fireworks displays, here i sit at my computer updating my blog. i can hear all of the pops and bangs going on from my window. we did just come in from outside after firing up a dozen or so sparklers. at any rate, today was a glorious fourth and the weather for the parade was choice. it was hot & muggy, a perfect summer day. i played grill-master at my parents place and we spent all day with family. i took pictures at the parade until the batteries in my camera died, see the rest here.
more soon...

independence day...

tomorrow being the fourth day of july we will join the rest of the nation in celebrating our country's independence. traditionally this has meant heading down to my folks place in eagan, mn for the eagan\apple valley parade. we will have a chance to visit and catch-up with my parents who have been gone to boston for the past month, eat, and maybe see some fireworks on the way home. it's a short mid-week brake as i have to be back in the office thursday and friday before heading off for vacation on saturday morning.

do you have what it takes to become a united states citizen? i took the test here. i missed 6. i should have paid more attention in government class.

t-mobile personal coverage check

the prices are starting to gear up for vacation 07. this year it's back to twin lakes resort in the u.p of michigan. there is much to do before we depart saturday morning, but thats another topic. i was curious to see if i can expect to get cell phone coverage this year as 3 years ago, we got '0' service on either cell. now, not having a signal isn't the worst thing in the world as i really don't want to be getting work related emails and phone calls but it can be nice in case of emergency or if we forget and leave the sprinkler on. as a matter of fact we are taking very little in the way of technology, a few cd's, an ipod, and yes, a portable dvd player for the kids in the car. at any rate, i decided to check the t-mobile site to see if i would get a signal on my blackberry and what i can determine is that it may be possible. i do have a blackberry 7100t which apparently is an 850 MHz compatible handset which might be able to access their 850 MHz roaming coverage network. with the following exceptions of course:

This map predicts and approximates our wireless coverage area outdoors, which may vary from location to location and may change without notice. It may include locations with limited or no coverage. Our maps do not guarantee service availability. Even within a coverage area, there are several factors, such as: network changes, traffic volume, service outages, technical limitations, signal strength, your equipment, terrain, structures, foliage, weather, and other conditions that may interfere with actual service, quality, and availability, including the ability to make, receive, and maintain calls. Multi-band (850/1900 MHz) GSM/GPRS handset required for access to 850 Roaming Coverage.

right...so i guess they are guaranteeing that it may or may not work. thanks.