Fernandina Beach, FL: October 9-12, 2025 - On This, The Day of Your Brother's Wedding

I got to go to Mary's favorite place on Earth, Fernandina Beach, for the occasion of her brother's wedding.  She'd been describing the beauty of this place for months, but unfortunately my arrival coincided with a tropical storm parked off the coast that brought grey, drizzly days and choppy, windy waters to Amelia Island for almost the whole trip.  Not great for the wedding either!

Nonetheless, it was wonderful to see.  I got in Thursday mid-morning, getting picked up at the Jacksonville airport by Mary and her mom to get shuttled over to the beach house.  Then it was off to lunch at Peppers, where we discovered the vases for the rehearsal dinner were MIA, so we had to do some emergency vase shopping at thrift stores in the area.  Then we took those vases to the venue for the rehearsal dinner and set them up:

A quick treat at nearby Thirteen (a bakery) and Mocama (a coffee shop), plus a stop at Cats Angels (a cat shelter and thrift store) and CVS (don't know that one), and it was at last time to return to the house to relax.

We attempted a beach walk, but it was windy and rainy, and the sand whipped our faces too much to continue.  We retreated to the indoors after about ten minutes.  We did get to hang with da dawgs, however:

Dinner that night was at The Sandbar, where we met more of Mary's extended family and enjoyed our seafood dinner by the sea.  

We then went into town to try to find some ice cream, but instead settled on fudge.  At Island Time, an ice cream place we looked at, there was a claw machine for one dollar.  I told Mary, "I'll win you a stuffed animal".  I put in a dollar and dropped the claw - and I got one!  Lucky me!  As it came out, I noticed it was holding a cardboard "golden ticket".

I went to the counter and asked what this meant.  The girl told me, "you win the grand prize".  Double lucky me!  I envisioned a lifetime supply of fudge, a hundred thousand dollar check, maybe ownership of the business.  I asked what the grand prize was, and she didn't know - she went in the back room to ask someone, then returned, and slowly pointed behind herself to a high shelf containing...another stuffed animal.

So I won two guys.  Their names are Bootus and Borts.

After this adventure, we returned to the house to go to sleep.  Friday morning we started the day at Amelia Island Coffee, then went seaside where the waves were choppy:

We poked around town for a bit, then went to a spot that housed fossils, including a family favorite: shark teeth.  Shark teeth were a big theme at the wedding, even adorning that night's rehearsal dinner tables.  That's one of the big things to do in Fernandina: look for shark teeth on the beach.

Moon River Pizza was the lunch spot of choice, then it was back to the house to get dressed for the rehearsal dinner, which I arrived at early with the family to finish setting up.

The dinner went great; food was eaten and speeches were made.  Not Mary's, though, not yet - she was giving the Best Man speech at the reception, which I helped her practice a bit that evening after the dinner.

The next day was Wedding Day, and after a quick breakfast at Hola Cuban Cafe, I helped to deliver the charcuterie to the hotel where the groomsmen were staying, then delivered Mary and her mom to the wedding venue where they had almost a full day's worth of prep to do - makeup, hair, the works.  Which meant I had a fair bit of downtime to stroll about the main in-town part of Amelia Island.  

Then: Wedding Time!

This not being my wedding, I'll keep private matters private and not post a bunch of photos and videos here, in this, my Travel Blog.  Suffice it to say it was a lovely service, and a rowdy reception after.  And Mary's speech was excellent!

The post-reception partying was minimal for Mary and me, who were very tired at the end of the long day, and we soon found ourselves back at the house, on the rooftop porch in the moonlight, listening to the cataclysmic crashes of the waves in the dark.

The final day was still a very full day, since Mary and I did not fly out until the evening.  We went to a late breakfast with the newly married couple at the Beach Diner, then bebopped around town before returning to the house to do a beach walk - it was finally nice weather again after a dreary few days!

The last thing before heading to the airport was dinner at an exquisitely beach-vibed restaurant named Sliders.  I got the fish:

and we ate and enjoyed the sun and the warmth as the day drew to a close.

On our way out to the cars, I stuck my hand out to Mary's brother to shake his and said, "well...welcome to the family!"

Hendersonville and Fletcher, NC: September 5-7, 2025 - Borne Back Ceaselessly Into the Past (Kanuga)

When I was a yoof (youth), my church retreat every fall was at a place called Kanuga, which is a conference center in the mountains of North Carolina.  Then, in college, I did a couple summers as a camp counselor at Kanuga for a camp called JYP.  In fact I wrote about it in the first slate of posts for this very blog!

I have fond, fond memories of this place, and was very disheartened to learn, upon moving back to Charlotte in 2022, that my church had stopped going to Kanuga for their yearly retreat.  But then, earlier this year, the news: they had decided to start going again, starting with the 2025 program year!

And so it was that, for the first time in nearly two decades, I was back at Kanuga for a parish weekend, this time with Mary by my side:

We got in late-ish Friday night, having left after work, so it was dark by the time we got in and most people seemed to have turned in already for the evening - we didn't run into many of my fellow churchgoers until the next morning.  But I did get to show Mary around the Inn area:

As well as the inside of the Chapel:

The next morning, we took a stroll around the lake:

Before a bit of a "and now for something completely different" moment: an offsite excursion to the North Carolina Mountain State Fair!

This was something that had been put on a list of suggested activities for us, so we decided to go!

One of the first things we did was get deep fried Oreos for Matt, because I hadn't had them I think since this here post.

What a treat.

We went in and out of the venues:

Got a coffee:

did NOT ride the rides.

Saw some crafts:

Including a lady who did calligraphy, and made us this for free!

And Mary got this small boy:

And lastly, we finished with the animals:

Before heading back to Kanuga just in time for lunch.

Next, an afternoon walk of the "campus", wherein I meandered through my own past, pointing out to Mary all the places and talking of old times:

Rain began to loom, and combine that with the semi-cool beginnings of fall weather, you got a recipe for no lake activities, which was always hit or miss back in the day anyway, but still:

I had kinda hoped that we could at least rent a canoe, and beat on, boats against the current, borne back...well, you know the rest.

Instead, we played an indoors game of giant checkers:

Soon, dinner time, and then the evening festivities: an Agape feast and a talent show (which we'd been relentlessly hounded to be recruited for).

A good time was had by all.  I actually participated in the talent show back in high school once.  Just on a whim.  I think I won, but then again: everyone does.

The next morning was another short stroll after breakfast with our coffees.  We went by the small beach (which is meant mainly for small children to play in)

...and then it was time for church!

Yes, folks, it's a church retreat: that means on Sunday you go to church.

Was a lovely service.  I have good memories of that point in the weekend from my youth group days.  By that point, we'd usually slept a grand total of maybe 4 hours since Friday afternoon, and church was like the home stretch before collapse.  Was always melancholy, as Sundays honestly typically are; not the end, but the almost end, when opportunity is limited but not completely gone.

It's funny; I'm not entirely sure why these memories shimmer so brightly in my mind.  It was only a handful of weekends from my adolescence, and I have only a few specific memories of the things we'd get up to.  I guess that's those days for you.  More of a feeling than an event.  

I'd say it was the freedom, though.  I notice those are the moments that really stick out from childhood: those times when you were master of your own domain, even a little, even in a limited way.  And at Kanuga, you certainly were.  Dropped off with your peers on a Friday afternoon and allowed to roam wherever you pleased until Sunday church.  Didn't come by that often in those early years, I can say that for sure.  

Oops, there I go pontificating again.  Been doing that a lot in my old age.

After church, Mary and I - along with most attendees - packed up and headed out, but we had a couple of stops before hitting the road in earnest.  After our less-than-successful attempt in early August, we wanted to try - now that we were in Western NC again - another go at Jump Off Rock.  And I am glad we did:

Mary was so right about the view.

Then, because we'd liked it so much on the last trip, we did another stop for coffee at Ecusta:

So we dipped back into that trip, which itself dipped back into the March trip, all while in a place that dipped back into my childhood; a recursion enough to make your head spin.

Salt Lake City, UT: August 27-30, 2025 - We Are in the Place

It's been over 10 years since my last trip to Salt Lake City, which feels like another life ago.  Last time, I was there for a conference, namely ACDA.  This time, Mary was there for a conference, and I was there just for fun!

I joined her midweek as her conference events were wrapping up so that we could have a couple days of sightseeing in the Utah capital, arriving Wednesday night and pretty much just heading straight to bed as it was already getting late.  Speaking of the capital, I visited the Capitol building the next morning as Mary was attending her last session, and it was pretty grand!

It's a pretty good Capitol.  Again, as the resident expert now, I'd rate it very well, though maybe not among the best of the best.  Top 50% easy.

I found it quite similar to Kentucky's, actually.  Similar look and size.

Anyway, aside from a detour to pick up the rental car, that was my only solo time during this trip.  By late morning, Mary's sessions were done and she was free and clear to enjoy the city with me.

Our first stop was the Salt Lake City public library, which is in this crazy 5-story building with a few other shops and glass elevators:

We went up to the rooftop terrace then meandered our way down through the levels, arriving back on one and then heading to another bookish spot: Ken Sander's Rare Book store.  I liked this place a lot!  I ended up buying a 1930s book of Robert Frost poetry and an old hymnal from the 1890s.

Lunch followed at a place called Arempas (where we had arepas), then a coffee break at Rawbean, then it was time to make use of that rental car to head into the surrounding mountains.

I know the ACDA group went into the mountains at the end of our trip in 2015, but I am really not sure where we were.  I don't think it was this place, called Snowbird, but it could have been near the same area.  Regardless, there was a cable car to take us up to the top of the mountain, which was great to get to utilize in the offseason like this:

The scenery at the top was hard to beat:

...also, between the city and the top of the mountain there was probably about a 30 degree temperature difference.

We made our way back off of the mountain and into the city once again to prep for our evening activities.  The big activity was attending a rehearsal of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, which is what everything else was being planned around.  I had actually been up adjacent to Temple Square already that day, on my way to the Capitol.  The Temple itself, and many of the auxiliary buildings, are currently under renovation, so the usual majesty of that area is a bit diminished:

I suppose this counts as another manifestation of my travel curse, where something is always closed down or unavailable.  Would have been nice to see that area in all her glory.

Nonetheless, we carefully mapped out a route to the Tabernacle that included both dinner and a stop at the Planetarium, which I enjoyed immensely:

We took in a show in the dome theater about the formation of Earth and I had a momentary existential crisis about how transient human life is and how we're all just hurdling around on this one, lone inhabitable ball in space which could be destroyed at any moment.

You know, the usual.

Sped out of there to the mall food court where we wolfed down a meal in record time:

And then happily made our way to the Tabernacle with multiple minutes to spare!

...but wait, what's this?  Where are all the people?

Well, here's where the curse really did manifest.  The choir had just been on tour in Argentina, and many members were now sick.  So rehearsal was now canceled.

The thing we'd planned the whole day around!  Arguably the whole trip!  

As frustrating as it was, it really did not ruin the trip, let me just say that.  We had a great time and saw a lot.  But this was the really unique thing, the really special thing, the thing that mirrored one of our most core interests.  And it was off.

So now we had some spare time, and nothing much to do with it.  Getting on the internet machine, we located something nearby that looked odd and interesting enough to capture our attention, so off we went...to Dreamscapes:

On the way there, we passed by the Union Pacific building which, unbeknownst to me at the time, was the very place the choir folk had recorded ourselves singing Rachmaninoff more than a decade ago:

The place was in this open-air shopping area called Gateway:

So, okay.  What was this place?  Well, it was an art museum, essentially, but one with deliberately weird, surreal sets, apparently all made from recycled material, and where you are encouraged to touch/interact with the installations.  

Around every corner, a new universe.  Reality folding in on itself.  It was wonderful.  It made me feel insane.

Plus: a ball pit!

So missing the Tabernacle was a bummer, but what a discovery to make instead.

We made our way back to the hotel by way of WanYen, an ice cream place, where I had a flavor called Bangkok Tea, which was one of the more unusual flavors I've had.  It was like a sweetened green tea, turned into ice cream.

We finally made it back to the hotel and collapsed on the bed.  This had been a big day.  Our dogs were barking.  My iPhone said I took over 25,000 steps!

The next day was to be a big day as well, though the step count did fall a bit shorter.  We started with breakfast at the hotel, then made our way to a place called Red Butt:

...ah, wait.  Sorry.  Red Butte.

This was botanical garden/arboretum kind of place, but with the majestic mountains in the background.  A wonderful start to our morning - and we were able to get through it before the day got too hot out.

Gorgeous!

Then, right next door, was the Natural History Museum of Utah, which had an uninterrupted sloped path the crossed all five levels with seamless ease:

Our last venture in the northeastern corner of the city was lunch, at a place that came highly recommended by...the internet?  Maybe?  Ruth's Diner:

The food was certainly tasty, but the extreme wait to get our check at the end of the meal soured me a little on it.  It didn't screw anything up, but boy was I grumpy!

And Ruth wasn't even working that day!!

A hotel respite was in order after that very full morning, but then it was at last time: time to venture to the city's namesake, time to see the natural wonder of this desert plain.  It was time to go to the Great Salt Lake!

I had hoped and intended to physically get in the lake, but once we arrived there I sort of "lost my appetite" so to speak.  Mainly, it was the smell.  All that evaporation gives way to a very sulfuric odor which, along with the surrounding desert gives one the sense that this is not a place that life is welcome.

Also, any time I tried approaching the water, a swarm of gnats emanated from the ground in front of me, like something straight outta Exodus.  Not a good omen!

And what's with this obelisk??

Needless to say, the vibes were off.  Was good to see it, though!

On our way back into town, we stopped at a coffee spot, and then walked to an iconic SLC landmark: the big ol whale:

Another hotel stop and a quick dinner at a place called Zao, then it was time for our last big outing of the evening: a place called Trolley Square, which is a shopping mall and outdoor pavilion.  

We bebopped around the shops as evening fell, then returned by train when the day was done.

We turned in the rental car, then took a dip in the hotel's indoor-outdoor pool, which by that time of year had already begun to be a bit chilly by nightfall.  Luckily there were also hot tubs to boil us alive like lobsters!

Last, we enjoyed a spot of ice cream on the front patio by the fountains:

The next morning we had just enough time for some quick activities before our early afternoon flight to Chicago and then home.

First up, the farmer's market, where we intended to grab a breakfast of some kind:

Coffee was easy to come by, as were light pastries, such as my apple cider donuts:

...but for something more substantial, we stopped in at The Rose Establishment:

Then we strolled back to the hotel, through the heart of the city we'd gotten to know quite well in our short whirlwind time there.  On the way, we saw a huge group of young people enter into a building, and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to sneak in behind them, and see once again the inside of the Salt Palace Convention Center, where I'd come to ACDA all those long years ago: