Hooray for Hollywood!

Emily won’t admit it, but she really wants to be a star.  The kids and I had decided to have some fun on the way to San Diego for the family reunion.  I let each of the kids pick something that they really wanted to do.  Woodrow picked Disneyland, and Emily picked Hollywood.   She loves the idea of Hollywood!

I was afraid the reality would come a little short for her, but it didn’t.  She loved it.  Just as we were leaving, she got to see the Cheetah Girls arriving in a limo.  That definitely made her day!  But even before that she was sold.  She could get used to showbiz!

I said I let the kids pick what they wanted to do.  There were two things on my list, but neither of them made the final plans: the Redwood National Forest, and Griffith Observatory.  I would have loved to do that, but there just wasn’t enough time.  So I figured we’d put it off until the mythical next time.  But I got lucky on one.

Visiting the observatory was a personal quest.  When I was just a kid, I took a distance course (when they were known as correspondence courses) in astronomy.  The course was distributed in video tapes, and the instructor was the director of Griffith Observatory.  I treasure the time I had with those tapes.  Even today I remember the background music, and I still hum it now and again when I’m feeling elated.  Visiting Griffith Observatory in person is a logical next step, something I had been wanting to do for 27 years.  I didn’t think I was going to get the chance, but after we left the Hollywood area, we were looking for a place where we could get a good view of the “Hollywood” sign.  We drove mostly at random, and we stumbled into Griffith Park.  I know an opportunity when I see one, so I headed right to the observatory.  And, wouldn’t you know it? the park has an excellent view of the sign!

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