Lola's Salon

And Mr. Lola and all the little Lola's thank you as well, P&L.

I´d make a condolence piece for you Lola but it looks like there´s a bit of a back-log coming up.Maybe you should take the roach and we´ll forget about Mr.Siegel.
Do we have room in the wizard mobile?

Don't worry hebba, I have a trailer behind my flaming flowered PT Cruiser and there's plenty of room for the cockroach.

Great,then the cockroach comes too.It´s all yours dear Lola.

This is such fine company that I would follow you anywhere, but first I want one more trip to the little valley that Scorpion and I found. Danon, one more ride, please.

Soon, Scorpion and I are back at the valley exploring a little more, only to find out it is a box canyon, with only one way in or out. Back on the rim, I remove Scorpion's saddle, knowing he will be content to stay nearby munching on the rich, mountain grass.

Once again, the eagles are in the sky, flying toward each other. It looks like they are about to collide when they extend their talons and grasp the other's talons and start to twirl, spinning faster and faster as they plummet toward the ground.

As they drop in their wild spin, the world seems to slow as the pair continues its wild dance; in a celebratory prelude to mating, an exhilarating ode to the joy of life while flirting dangerously with death.

Nearing the earth, so close to death, they suddenly release their grip and begin separate flights back to the top of the sky, slowly flapping their huge, powerful wings until they once again float lazily, gracefully on the thermals.

They circle the canyon a couple of times until one calls to the other and they veer off to the east, quickly disappearing over the mountains.

And the world remembers to breathe. The wind comes rushing through the pines as Diane leans against a tree, panting, gasping, taking in great gulps of air, realizing that she had forgotten to breathe during those brief, timeless moments.

Normally energetic and in love with life, she realizes that, until witnessing those breathtaking moments, she had never felt so exquisitely alive.

Even poor Scorpion seemed shaken, so she gets out the curry comb and grooms him until he regains his composure.

Pure instinct guided them home, lost as they were in the moment and the memory. Finally arriving at the barn, Diane postpones going into the saloon--not wanting to talk or to see anyone until she can recover from this extraordinary experience. She knows the memory will remain fresh for the rest of her life. It is one of those rare memories that return in full with all the scents, the weight of the air on your skin, every detail sharp and perfect. The beauty of those memories will always have the ability to pierce her soul. She felt blessed.

After an hour, she walked back to the saloon, still filled with wonder. Getting a drink from Wassau, she notices that everyone is ready to go. Wait for me!! I'll be ready in a few minutes.

"Diane! Hey, you look like you've just experienced a miracle. That glow around you would light up the whole town on a dark night." said danon as Diane softly floated through the room mumbling something to herself.
"She reminds me of an Indian after a vision quest. They would go off alone for any number of reasons, like seeking a name or wanting to find out the significance of a dream, etc. Then, at some very secluded site, they would say a prayer while drawing a sacred circle in the earth, and then would remain in the circle for days at a time with no food or water until a vision appeared to them. Most of the time they would come back to the village with that same glow about them that Diane has. Those were the good vision quests. Occasionally one would come back to the village terrified and not wanting to talk about it. That wasn't so good.

"Anyway, Scorpion will tell me all about their adventure later.

"Looks like Scorpion is going to have some company on our new adventure. Pearl has to ride with him and then there is the cockroach. We'll make it all fit somehow.

"If need be I can fly back here and pick up whats left behind. I've flown recips, turboprops, jets and a variety of helicopters. No problem."

Hey Danon, yes, it was like a vision quest. Funny, I could hardly wait to get out of Tucson and away from my family when I was a kid, but the land, the desert and the mountains are different. When I need to restore my soul, that is where I head.

What fun that you are a pilot!! May I fly with you? We'll be going over some great country.

Well, sure Diane, you may fly with me any time. The great thing about a chopper is that you can land it almost anywhere given rotor blade clearance and a fairly level spot. Sometimes I need help to clear the zone so I just hover my machine over a good spot while someone steps off to move a rock or a limb or something. It's really fun flying.

Um, Danon, while I love this country and love to go camping, stepping off of the helicopter to clear rocks and limbs would be a guarantee of a bad hair day. Remember, I'm mostly an Easterner now. I need to be within 2 hours of a Lord and Taylors most of the time. I can go without for a couple of weeks, but I like my Levi's and custom made shirt to look good.

You know how much I love the worn look on cowboys, but that doesn't mean I would want to live in it myself. I know that sounds shallow as hell, sweet Danon, but that's the way it is with me.

So, if you can find someone else to clear the way for the copter, I would love to ride with you and enjoy the scenery.

Really, Diane? That sounds like fun to me! But I don't want to get any grit in my eyes, I'll have to find a pair of Ray-Ban aviators... hopefully with mirror lenses.

Being such a westerner, I've never even BEEN in a Lord & Taylor's!

edited for silly grammar error!

Yo, Piffka! I'll loan you my pair of special edition Ray-Ban's called The General after the style that MacArthur wore. Lens has a nice golden tint with mirror effect. It will add to the flare of your aviators scarf - which by the way, the early pioneers of aviation wore to wipe the castor oil off their faces as they flew.
LOL Diane, I say to each their own and don't think anything of your aversion to looking like a trail hardened cowgirl. Sometimes though there is a certain appeal to that look when it is tastefully done and all the curves are in the right places.

Oh Danon, Ms. Diane is tres appealing and not just for her blonde locks and incredible green eyes. We were having to fight the men off when we were in Woodstock last month.

I am thrilled to hear about the sunglasses! Wonderful, a special edition? Somewhere I have my dad's old aviator scarf, I'll have to dig them out of the trunk. I did not know about the castor oil but trust the vehicle you pilot will be from a later time.

I will be driving on to the eastern seaboard in the Vo... Hane & Brad-dear-ly want me to drop down to Santa Fe for the Illuminaria. We're too close to miss that! I guess we'll see you Further Down the Road.

Hmm, I wonder if the cockroach will fit in the chopper? And what of the rest of us? Sounds like danon will need to fly one of those big Hueys, thinks jes as she packs the gear.

<psst> Jes-
(The cockroach, the horse and the other horse are to be pulled in a trailer by Danon's flower-flaming PT Cruiser.) Danon will then be coming back... as needed, if needed, for any things left behind.

You are welcome to come with me and the kids in the Vo OR take your accustomed spot in the WizardMobile.

Ah, thank you. It's the logistics that always trip me up, says jes as the black Cadillac with the horse trailer (now empty, as the Pearl somehow magically escaped) drives up.

Bugsy Siegel gets out and is holding a book. "I need an interpretation of this damn short story, and I need it now! It's drivin' me nuts!"

The book is The Great Gatsby. Everyone digs into their High School memories and simultaneously wonders if the gangster is doing a book report or something.

Ah ha! While the cat's away, the mice will play, I see..........checking in to say Merry Christmas to all.

Ah! The swift-footed Black Footed Ferret has arrived to whisper to Diane that Cobalt has arrived in Arizona! But, said ferret seems to be ranging 'round the company in tne Saloon (oops! I meant Salon!) and whispering sweet nothings to dlowan, piffka, Lola, Danon5, and Diane. Cobalt thinks that the ferret has a limited amount of "memory" to carry messages....hemmmmm.

Piffka: I am not far from NM and am interested in your trip details!

Danon5: have you seen the Ft. Worth Modern Art Museum, just opened? It is well-worth the drive... Best modern art and architecture combined that I have ever seen! If you don't go by the end of February, I have plans for you when I travel to Dallas to retrieve more "stuff" for my move to the Sun Belt.

To Diane and all Cronedom: Love to you all, and hey! Merry Christmas!

HO, HO, HO. said danon to all. Here is wishing each and everyone a very happy and joyous MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Hi Cobalt!! We are all sooooo glad you made it safely to AZ. No, we haven't made it to the Mod Art Mus yet - but will definitely be going. Plans eh?? Tell me more. Feb sounds good.

We, by now have that swift footed black ferret brainwashed you know. A sort of double agent in the ferret spy game.

Lola, mice huh? All I have to say to that is "Squeek, squeek." (Mice talk for Yep, we had fun playing"

Yo, Danon5! Fixed wing calling. Maintaining terrain clearance as can't for the life of me work out the step-down fixes between the FAF (final approach fix) and what looks like a MAP (missed approach point).

Thought was invited to Lola's Salon, located in elegant Manhattan townhouse. Instead GPS displays a nightmarish saloon overrun by giant bugs located in some godforsaken mesa. Are my avionics on the blink???

>>> while waiting for Danon to retrieve navaids from Jeppesen database quickly drops off note of condolences for Lola's father-in-law to original waypoint location specified by Blatham, townhouse at Waverly Place; fortunately the personnel is still there to take it up to Lola - naturally in a sterling silver tray; they seem to be organizing for a big Christmas party later today! <G>>>