Santa Barbara Animal Adventure

Mr. P had a wonderful time traveling to Santa Barbara, California from January 31 to February 4 with Mara to meet up with her friend Tara! They encountered travel woes, a billion cute animals (including the cutest ostriches ever), they went to a film festival and hounded film star Jennifer Lawrence, went to the beach, watched butterflies mate, and went whale watching! How do you fit all that into a few days? Mr. P and his guest are pros at this kind of thing. Here we go:

A crazy layover in Denver for Mr. P and Mara as they missed their connecting flight.

Alas! A beach and a drink in Cali, just how this traveling pickle likes it.

Hello hippie cupcake!

Mr. P enjoys the view from the Santa Barbara courthouse tower. (Looks a bit European, eh?)

What up, Ben Franklin? You like chillin' with a pickle, or what?

Ben must have not liked chillin's with Mr. P. He put these pigeons on him! BIRD ATTACK!

Enjoying a bagel while waiting to board the whale watching boat! WHALES!

Tara and Mr. P trying to stay dry and look for whales at the same time.

Look out One Eyed Willie, we're coming up right behind ya! Well, Mr. P and Tara that is.

At a "weird bar." GAME OVER. Poor Mr. P, he's never been good at this game.

Hello film fest! Hello HUNGER GAMES star Jennifer Lawrence. Check out Mr. Pickle's bow & arrow! His skills could give Katniss a run for her money. In his mind.

Theater front. Trying to get his eyes on THE Jennifer Lawrence.

In the meantime, may as well practice some Katniss-style bow moves...

Alas! Jennifer Lawrence is spotted! Look at Mr. P, being all cute and blurry and stalkerish.

Pickle-blur inside the theater, waiting for J-Law to give her interview and get her award. Yes, inside! It was a beautiful, old-style movie palace! This green guy does enjoy a good film.

Checking out the butterfly preserve. The area is full of eucalyptus trees and milkweed plants, so it's an ideal place for them to stop on their migration to and from Mexico. Mr. P LOVES monarchs.

If you walk up a path from the preserve you end up on this bluff. Great view!

Mr. P's lovely hosts, Mara and Tara. No, their names don't rhyme, and he kept getting it all confused.

Attempting to feed the ostriches at the ostrich farm. OSTRICHES! They are sooooo cute and Mr. P just wanted to pet one.

Then he saw the signs and decided against it. Even though he has survived alligator attacks on more than one occasion.

Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?

They stopped in a Frankenmuth/Gaylord-esque town (except a Danish version) in the mountains for lunch. It was strange to see a bunch of Nordic stuff in the middle of the California hills. The food was amazing though: Danish sausage, Swedish meatballs, cabbage, pan-fried potatoes, and of course, PICKLES! Mr. P was in heaven.

Onto a mini horse farm! Do you C Mr. Pickle?

After leaving the mini-horse farm, they passed by an animal rescue park/petting farm and had to stop. Mara says it was the happiest place she's ever seen. The animals were all running around in the same pens in harmony, and they were all so CLEAN! She tried to take a picture of Mr. Pickle riding on the tortoise, but it was too fast and he kept falling off.

The baby mini-donkeys like to snuggle with people at naptime. Tara and Mr. P. were happy to keep this baby company. Mr. P. tipped his hat down and was about to take a snooze, too.

Happy, crazy animals playing.

Hannah's mom runs the animal rescue. What a fun job!

When she would yell "Heeeeey, Tom!" one of the turkeys would gobble.

Last stop, the lavender farm! The lavender wasn't really blooming, but there was a fun purple store that sold lavender products. Mr. P. helped Mara pick out some sachets to take home!

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Alas, an action-packed trip comes to end. So much fun was had! Mr. P thanks his gracious hosts. It's amazing how every trip to California is so different!

Don't forget to check out his itinerary and see if you can fit Mr. Pickle into you travel plans!

Seattle's Best Everything

Mr. Pickle loves librarians, and he loves tagging along with them on conferences. True facts. He headed over to Chicago and then spent January 21-25 in Seattle, Washington (a state he's never been) with Karla. In addition to library business they drank yummy drinks, went on adventures all over the place, and Mr. P even met some pickle friends!

The ALISE conference ponders... 

Always the beautiful question.

 

Mr. P met some Britt's Pickles! FREE SAMPLES. Live cultured foods are his best friends; they're smart.

They visited the EMP Museum, which was AMAZING! Hey Doctor Who fans, check out that Dalek! Mr. Pickle was all over the music installations and pop-culture fun.

Hello tasty brew at the Gordon Biersch Brewery.

Time for Mr. P and his friends to enjoy more tasty eats. Pike Place Chowder hit the spot. Apparently there's a legacy behind this place.

Market time, market time.

No loitering? Yeah, right.

SHOWGIRLS! What? Mr. P, I hope you were covering your eyes. Only $1 for video peeps though.

No trip to Seattle is complete without some Pearl Garden & Sound Garden in your ears. Mr. P forgot to pack his flannel shirt. D'oh!

Where are we?

Mr. Pickle is a BIG fan  of public transporation. (Here's a secret: Mr. P doesn't pay anything on his travels. He has special privileges anywhere he goes. But he doesn't let it go to his head. He's very grateful.)

He sure celebrates libraries and librarians! He travels with them to lovely places.

Mr. P's still not sure if this really is Seattle's Best Coffee.

The needle points upward! Seattle's famous needle. It's not for sewing, silly Mr. Pickle.

Hot Mama! Many Hot Mamas. Oh my, Mr. P was a bit overwhelmed with all of the attention they gave him. They were a little to sassy for him though.

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And so ends another STELLAR trip with lovely folks. Thanks, Karla for all the fun!

Next up he's headed back to Cali! 

He's got some free time coming up after that. Where will YOU take him?! 

Skating to Venice

Mr. Pickle had the honor of joining Susie and Jeff on a quick weekend trip to Venice Beach, California from January 5-7. It was a mix of business and pleasure. There was a beach, some relaxing, some skating, some fun.

Check out these stylish looking lads at In n Out Burger at LAX. First up double double fries and a shake. Then a 10 mile skate to Venice.

Mr. P was tightly packed, ready to roll. Literally.

Brunch at Rose Cafe in Venice was sweeeeet. This pickle really needs some sunglasses.

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Oh, what a lovely little getaway! Mr. P sure digs California. In fact, he's probably going again in a few weeks. But! Next up is a state he's never been to: Washington!

What did Delaware for Christmas?

Mr. Pickle had a wonderful Christmas with my pals Ryan and Alaina and their beautiful dog Cody on a trip east to the tiny state of Delaware from December 22-30. (A state he has never been.) They are ALL champion runners, and Mr. P was trying his best to keep up with those three. They are the fastest people I know. There were plenty of road stops, family times, running, chilling, snowball throwing, and doggy petting on this trip. Here we go:

Mr. Pickle rode in Ryan's hydration pack while running in White Clay Creek Park and Middle Run Valley Park. Mr. P's favorite part was the break they took on the Mountain Goat Trail when he looked out from the tree. Ryan reports that they ran 7 minutes per mile on trails! 

 

They saw an old fieldstone structure that Mr. Pickle was very interested in.What's inside, dude?

Playing dead?

Trails. To run. Or being carried in.

Pickle loves signs. He respects other trail users. 

Take it to the bridge, y'all.

On another day, Mr. P also went for a run with Ryan, Alaina, AND Cody! This time it snowed; the first snow of the season there. Mr. P was almost more excited than Cody to run in the snow. This time they ran 6.5 miles on the trails in White Clay Creek Park.

And... They're off. Hang on, Mr. P!

Mr. P joined Ryan's entire family for a trip to Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. Such greens!! That waterfall sure was pretty.

Hey, symmetry.

Such a pretty greenhouse, so full! Mr. P could totally get lost in this place. Literally.

But not here! Mr. P enjoys the colors.

Oooooh magical. Mr. P is pretty entranced.

He was SO excited to see Thomas the Tank Engine! Chugga chugga woooo woooooooo!

Behind the scenes of Pickle photo action. There are TWO pickles! 

Mr. P and Alaina spy on a fancy dinner garden set-up.

How beautiful is this? Mr. P wondered if they were serving pickles at this function.

 

Christmas! Presents! Wrapping paper! Cody! Holy moly! 

Mr. P was quite amused and happy to join in on the holiday festivities with Ryan's clan. He helped open presents and joined in a family sing-a-long of The Twelve Days of Christmas. Ryan reports Mr. Pickle-face has perfect pitch. Who knew!

Ah, time to put the feet up and relax by a toasty fire. He enjoyed reading books at watching TV. Apparently his new favorite TV show is Homeland, and he really enjoy the book Sorta Like a Rockstar.

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What a fantastic trip! Mr. P was glad to be back in the running game, and glad to spend the holidays with a great family.  He was also THRILLED to have a week with Cody Bear and to visit at state he'd never been to before. 

Where are you taking him next?! He's ready for a beach. Actually, I am too,