Wicked Turns One

I had planned to do a retrospective of the year 2007, because there were so many cool things that happened. Some of them we covered here on Gretchen2dot0, and some we did not.

Most importantly, one year ago, I started trying to bring back the expression "Wicked!" The context of this is simple, those of you like Eric Germansky from Boston have been using the term for years. "Wicked" is an expression of great satisfaction, like when something is really cool. 2007 was a wicked year, and even though the term hasn't made it into the mainstream, it has caught on with a couple of my blog readers.

I'm looking forward to more great things in 2008. Let's make this the year when we Bring Wicked Back! Happy New Year!

Here are some great memories from 2007...

In a stretch humvee at CES in Vegas 2007...

Dinner with Campos friends after the CES keynote 2007!

Later that night, Neil at the Ghost Bar...

At the Windows Vista Lanch in NYC, January 2007

Me and Chrissy After Syd's Prom Party, February 2007

Susan and Barb at Gretchen 2.0 Party, March 30 in LaGrange

Some of the Dell gang including our host Mike at the Gretchen 2.0 Party

First inspection of the porta potties we rented for Gretchen 2.0 party...

Me with Valerie, Sharon and Brad Moore at Kate Harslem's Sweet 16 Party

Libby Anne Austin, daughter of my cousins Amy and Stewart, was born in March, pictured here with her Auntie Carolyn

My 15 year old blind cat and his [fake]mouseThen it was off to Asia....me in Khao Lak, Thailand wearing the flag of Gretchen 2.0
We loved the flowers, fruits and veggies in Thailand...
The Mandarin Oriental Chiang Mai, Winner of the Gretchen 2.0 International Big Kahuna of Spas for 2007. Who will win in 2008?
Our hotel in Cambodia was also the bomb, here's the first thing you see when you walk in...
Lisa and our guide in Siem Reap Cambodia at the Floating Village
First biking day in Vietnam - after our overnight train ride to Hue. The Imperial Palace is in the background...

My Aussie friends from the bike trip are totally cool, Heather is here being silly with me...Joylene and I rode in this basket boat type thing which we never completely figured out...

The fruits in Vietnam were just as amazing as in Thailand

I was worried I had lost muscle mass in my arms while biking, but Sharon assured me that was not true
Neil and AB at Fado in July
Me and Mom at the Girlstart event at METV Studios in August
We worked a lot on golf over the summer, Mom's swing is looking great!


Sheila with Duncan at their home in Exeter, NH
My Uncle Loye in the White Mountains of New Hampshire

The University of Tennessee Vols Pride of the Southland Marching Band in Neyland Stadium at the South Carolina Game


The Vols won in triple overtime!
Me, Sharon & Valerie at the Tragers' Halloween Party - we brought our fligh attendant outfits all the way back from Singapore!

Wannabe and Big Gray, my vagabond cats, on Halloween
Me at the Maroon 5 Concert in Vegas in November
Mu sister Laurel taking up residence in her new house in Portland, OR
At our holiday cocktail party we celebrated Michelle and Lisa's promotions


New Year's Eve at the Four Seasons was wicked - no idea why I decided to pull a Madonna and strike a pose in this photo. Let's hope for better sense in 2008.

Pawleys Island, South Carolina Redux #34

The day after Thanksgiving, Mom and I took off for Pawleys Island, South Carolina for a week with my uncle and his family. It's almost true that I've been going to Pawleys every year since I was born, but I counted and I missed 5 years in there someplace. So this was visit #34.

This year, we were lucky to have a first year visitor, Ms. Libby Anne Austin, age 6 months. Here are pictures of me and Libby Anne, and her and her mom, Amy.



Pawleys Island is an hour and a half north of Charleston and half an hour south of Myrtle Beach. They are famous for ghosts, golf, hammocks and of course, food.

Regarding ghosts, there are a few versions of the story, but the ghost in residence is widely agreed to be the Gray Man. He appears on the beach at Pawleys Island prior to hurricanes. Everyone who has seen the Grey Man says that he warns them to leave the island. Residents who are wise enough to actually take the Grey Man's advice always find their homes undamaged after the storm. Encounters with the Grey Man have been reported before every major hurricane that has struck the island for more than a hundred years. For more on this lovable spirit, go to http://www.state.sc.us/scdah/grayman.htm.

There are enough golf courses around Pawleys and Myrtle Beach that they say you could play a different one every day for a year. I played three of them, our favorite was the Tradition. A lot of my golf balls are still on The Tradition.


Pawleys is the home of the Original Rope Hammock. That was when all the hammocks were made by hand, not in China. You can still watch them being made at the Original Hammock Shop on Highway 17. All Pawleys Island beach cottages have a hammock. Our this year had three! They are pretty comfy once you get over the butt burn issues.


South Carolina food is some of my favorite in the world. Our top pick restaurant hands down is Frank's and Frank's Outback (www.franksandoutback.com). If you are ever in the area, you must try the place. There is simply nothing bad on the menu. The crab cakes, grouper, shrimp and grits and caramel cake were some group favorites this year. Here we are after a yummy meal.



I'd be remiss not to mention the college football drama which occurred on Saturday the 24th, the day we arrived, and December 1, the day we left. Both Tennessee and Clemson were victorious in their final regular season games, which causes a lot of celebration in our house. I'm still bitter about Tennessee losing the SEC championship to LSU and the Tigers' subsequent entry into the national championship, which is why I have not posted on the topic. I am happy for my Oklahoma pals, one of whom were at the game and even took time to educate me on what a "Sooner" is.



The next post will be about my time in Portland, Oregon during their "monster" storm (www.oregonlive.com/weather). Yes, I really did fly in an airplane during this thing...

Vegas 2007 and Other Fall Ruminations

It's hard to believe that the last time I was in Vegas was at CES in January of this year. (To see a photo of me at the show with a Dr. Evil impersonator, see the very first post on the blog.) It was time to go back again and as usual Vegas did not disappoint.

Tracy, Mary Beth and I attended the Maroon 5 concert at the new Pearl theater at the Palm. We loved the theater, and also the place where we had dinner, Nuovo Italiano on the 55th floor. But other than that, the Palm is not really our kind of place. To add insult to injury, we were super bummed to learn from People magazine that there were all sorts of celebrities at the Palm that weekend. Somehow we missed them.

Staying at the MGM Signature is always a good call, in contrast. The place is like a high end apartment building you can call your own while in Vegas. Here was what my room looked like, wicked:

The next night, we branched out and went to the Mirage for dinner at Japonais and drinks at Stack. We have absolutely no idea who these guys in the photo are...


Monday, I had a day dedicated entirely to me. OK, this entire year is probably dedicated entirely to me but especially that day was. I went all over Vegas and shopped til I dropped. I also visited a few of my favorite places, including the Bellagio Hotel, which has beautiful art.


There is one more issue which needs to be addressed on the blog, which is the absence of Andrew Bowins at the golf game which took place at Star Ranch on November 1, 2007. Several sources who wish to stay anonymous predicted he would wimp out, and they were right. Here's what a few folks had to say about Andrew...

“Yeah, Andrew was invited but did his usual—accept and then was a no-show. I’m actually glad he didn’t play because we’d still be out on the course waiting for him to finish.”
---V. Figueroa

"I used to think this was typical Canadian behavior but now I realize that he is unlike his countrymen..."
---T. Masson

"The word 'duck' comes to mind when AB approaches the tee-box."
---B. Kaufman<

Jackson, Wyoming

This year for Labor Day Weekend, I was lucky enough to be invited to the home of Eric Harslem, Rani Clasquin and Kate Harslem in Jackson Wyoming. Valerie Hanft came along too, and we had a super time. What great hosts! Here are some of the highlights of that trip.

The weather in Jackson was absolutely perfect. That meant I had a great view of the Teton mountains from my room when I woke up every morning.


Saturday, we had a golf game for which I did not report my score. Valerie, Kate and Eric were great sports, and it was a perfect day to be outside. After golf, we ventured into downtown Jackson for lunch and sightseeing.



Sunday, Eric and Rani took us on a hike to Jackson Peak. I almost made it but the altitude got the better of me about 15 minutes from the top. Despite a little bit of sprinkling rain as we got near the summit, it was a perfect day.

In the evenings, we got to enjoy the beautiful view from the patio, along with some great food and wine. The last day, Labor Day, Valerie and I were going for a walk when we got some unexpected but very cute visitors.


There was a definite chill in the air and we were told that ski season is coming soon. Last but not least, we decided that getting there is half the fun.


Next up for me: a road trip through Vermont and New Hampshire. More on that next week.