[jdviole2]

On our many vacations we visited many different hotels and motels. Some were very nice. The motel in Flagstaff Arizone, Little America was the most over the top motel we ever stayed in. The walls were covered with red velvet flocked wall paper and the room was filled with elaborate wood furniture. The only thing that freaked Helena out about this motel was that in the bathroom was one wall with a floor to ceiling mirror. She loved getting dressed and then being able to see top to bottom how she looked but the down side was that the wall was oposite the shower and the toilet. She told me that sitting on toilet and facing herself in a crystal clear image was more than she could take. She said she had to look at the floor the entire time. I must say I agreed with her. It is very disconcerting watching yourself doing something like that. The Hollywood Holiday Inn was another of the good hotels we stayed in. The rooms were just the basic but the people made up for it. We stayed there three times over 7 years and had the same waiter in the dining room each year. He actually remembered us from year to year. The most amazing to me was our final stay. It had been 5 years since we had been there, yet when we sat down our waiter came over with the drinks we were going to order. He remembered us from five years previous. At various times we saw celebrities there (I even rode up in the elevator with Donna Summer, anyone remember her?) There were some really bad places we stayed also. We stayed in a place in Palm Springs California that looked very nice and was a national chain. We had to move out of our first room due to the smell. Something had died and rotted in or very near the room. It smelled like a dead body. The next room we were in looked ok. There was a noise in the hall and I went over to peek out the door to see what caused the sound. You know how they have those peepholes in the doors. You can look out and see a wide angle view of the hall but no one can see into the room. Well the lens in this door was reversed. You couldn't see into the hall but from the outside you had a perfect view of the entire room inside. Helena wanted to change rooms but I just took a wad of chewing gum and blocked the hole. The worst place we ever stayed was a place called Ruby's Inn just outside of Bryce Canyon national park. At the time we were there it was the only place to stay within 30 miles of the park. And boy did they take advantage of it. We were on the second floor and you went up the stairs and along a outside walkway. The walkway creaked and groaned and actually sloped sharply toward the parking lot. It was on the edge of collapse. Then there was the restaurant. They had a salad bar. You got a small desert plate and were allowed only 1 trip to the salad bar. There was a choice of two salad dressings and you had to pour them out of the bottle. I don't remember the main course but only that it caused Helena severe upset of the stomache and an agonizing trip up the stairs, down the walkway, and into the room before spending a long time in the bathroom. The topper to the whole meal was the "homemade Hot Fudge Sundae". They had small dishes of soft serv ice cream already made in the freezer. The took the plastic wrap off of these and poured a little Hershey's Syrup right from the can over the top. That was it. It wasn't hot, it wasn't fudge, and the only thing home made involved an ice cream machine and a can opener. We were only there one night and both swore that when/if we came back to the park we would stay in the nearest town (30 miles away). The place is gone now (probably collapsed) and there is a Best Western (also called Ruby's Inn) in its place. If Helena were still here I'm sure she would tell you that even as a Best Western she wouldn't be staying at any place called Ruby's again. There are so many stories about so many places. Like the Red Roof Inn we stayed at in Kansas City that had a leaky roof. (Love the Irony). There was the motel in Estes Park Colorado that we stayed at that advertised itself as being out of the way and quiet and serene. The second time we stayed there most of the motel was occupied with college age men and women that were working in Rocky Mountain National Park. The night we arrived they had a huge party, real noisy. In the morning I was putting our camera equipment in the car and met two of the young women. They were very apologetic about the noise and told me that they didn't know anyone else was at the motel. I told them that was OK as long as the next time I got an invite to the party. (That part did not go over well with Helena. I was accused of being a flirt, she always accused me of flirting.) I told Helena that I was only joking and of course I wouldn't go to any party like that. She didn't buy that for a minute. Before we get to the pictures one last story. This also occured in LA at the Hollywood Holiday Inn. For our first trips to LA we flew and then took cabs, and public transport. We checked out and were getting into our cab. The driver asked us if we minded sharing the cab since he had some people that needed to get to the airport as soon as possible. Helena agreed, reluctantly, she like alone in the cabs with me. The driver put her in the front seat and I got in the back. The driver told me it might be a bit crowded and he hoped I wouldn't mind, then gave me a "dirty grin". I saw why. Dallas had been in town for a football game. We were going to be sharing a ride with four of the cheerleaders. Three of them got in the back seat with me (pressed very close). Then the fourth one asked me if I minded if she sat on my lap. I looked up and the only thing I saw were Helena's eyes. They looked black, like in the movies when the demon had possessed someone. I said sure and then began the best and worst ride I ever had in a cab. The best part can probably be understood by each of you. The hardest part (no pun intended) was to keep my face perfectly blank showing no emotion at all. Because I think that Helena spent the entire trip half turned in the seat making sure I behaved. She carried on a conversation with the girls and she told me later that she thought they were very nice. She enjoyed the ride, partially for the conversation, the other part for my discomfort. We got to the airport and checked in. We got on the plane and took off. Somewhere over the Rocky Mountains with no advance warning she turned in her seat and said to me "Well I just bet you are proud of yourself". That was the only mention of the cab ride for weeks. Later on of course it became a part of "family lore". She actually embelished the story more than I ever would have dared to. In her version of the story I was drooling and panting for the entire ride. In her version they were dressed in their cheerleader outfits (not true, damnit, just normal clothes). In her version I got a kiss goodbye from the one that was on my lap. I actually prefered her version to the truth. On to todays truth. The first picture is Helena in front of Manns Chinese Theater. I posted another similar picture but this is actually in the courtyard where the footprints are. This was probably the same trip with the cheerleaders, sometime in the late 70's. The second picture is another from her dad's shots. The third shot shows Helena sitting at trailside getting her camera ready. This was in the late 70's in Colorado. I'm not sure where the fourth shot is taken (possibly Silver Dollar City) but is probably from the mid 80's. The next picture shows Helena examining part of Hollyhock house in LA. This was a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. This was in the late 70's. The last picture is the last of the shots of Helena dressed to go out and our Tulips. In the late 70's.