Wedding in Japan

Last April, Gail and I took the trip of a lifetime to Japan to attend the wedding of our nephew, Morgan, to his bride, Makiko (Maki).  Morgan took a position as a teacher in Japan, where he met Maki, also a teacher.  They courted, fell in love, and married.  We spent several days in Tokyo prior to heading down to Kagoshima for the wedding.  The wedding was in a Shinto temple and was captivating and beautiful.  At the reception, I delivered a speech, which Morgan had previously requested of me.  I delivered it in Japanese to everyone's surprise!  I had worked with a Japanese-American parent at Millikan to translate my English words into Japanese writing and speech.  She coached me several hours to make sure the words were pronounced correctly.   Also attending the wedding from the USA were Rich, Peggy, Sara, and Travis.  A reception will be held in Mariposa this December to allow family and friends to celebrate with Morgan and Maki.  All of the Kellers plan to attend.

Maui Recap

Our first real "new life phase" vacation trip took place in mid-July, just weeks after Gail and I retired.  Our good friends, Rick and Lee Timboe, joined us for a week in Maui.  We had a gorgeous villa on the beach, which allowed us sunset views on a nightly basis.   Our activities included snorkeling, pool time, dining, and shopping.  Gail and Lee rode horses.  During their ride, Gail's horse (a stud named Brad Pitt), decided to lie down on its side.  Gail showed great "grandmother agility" and nimbly jumped off the horse before it could land on her.  Once the horse stood up again, Gail amazed the other riders by mounting the horse on her own.  Each evening was filled with card games, wine, and conversation.  Two memorable meals included the stuffed Mahi Mahi at Mama's and the prime rib at Kemo's in Lahaina.  Gail came home with a 37th anniversary keepsake, a beach glass necklace which took the artist two years to complete.

The Old Days

Donald Adelbert Keller of Aberdeen, South Dakota, married Elizabeth Bernadette Hillon of Liverpool, England, in New York City after World War II.   They settled in Nebraska where Don pursued his college studies at Hastings in preparation for a career in education.  Don was an expert musician who played the trumpet.  Rich and Don were born in Nebraska, the first of the eventual six sons.  A move to Long Beach, California, was made to gain proximity with relatives including Lucille (Don's mother),  Emma (Don's aunt) of Crestline, and Arvilla (another aunt) and husband, Hubert and their son, Alan Dean, of Colton.  The Kellers took up residence at 742 Toledo Court near 7th Street and Orange.  The location was good because Don could walk to work at Jefferson Junior High School along 7th Street, briefcase in hand.  While the boys were still in elementary school at Lincoln, the family moved to east Long Beach to 6743 El Progresso, and remained there until moving to Park Estates on El Parque.  Rich, Don, Ray, and Eric attended Millikan.  Neal and Gary attended Wilson.  The pictures in this blog were salvaged from some damaged displays which once decorated the bar area at El Parque.

Annual Berberet Retreat

Several years ago, the Berberet clan started a September tradition of bringing the family together on the beach at Carlsbad.  This year's excellent turnout included the Berberets (Cathy, Glen, Anna, Nicole, Dillon, Mike, Christy, Vaughn, and Reese) the Wards (Ross, Cassie, Mason, and Camille) and the Kellers (Don, Gail, Ryan, and Stephanie).  Volleyball, baseball, swimming, and eating were forefront in the hot beach weather.  There was a bit of taunting between those Oregon State supporters and the Oregon Duck loyalists.

Oh, Canada!

The slogan reads, "Beautiful British Columbia."  How true.  Gailee and I flew to Vancouver and arrived at our hotel on the edge of the bay overlooking Stanley Park, named for a former Canadian governor who also has his name on the biggest hockey prize -- the Stanley Cup.   We were delighted with a room upgrade and a bottle of champagne greeting us as part of our inaugural retirement tour.  We rode bicycles through the park, visited the rose garden, saw the totem pole exhibit, and managed to get to a great seafood restaurant on the pier at a table on the patio overlooking the harbor.  The following day, we took a "hop on and hop off" bus tour, hopping off to take a ferry to a wonderful little town called Granville, where Gailee purchased a broom from a broom store, a skirt from a fabric store, and shortbread from the market.  We did a lot of walking, at one point spending time at the olympic caldron which no longer supports a flame.  It was then off to Whistler for five days, driving along the beautiful Sea to Sky Highway.  Upon arriving at the Westin, we were delighted to have received another upgrade to a penthouse near the top floor.  Our next five days were consumed with site-seeing (we saw beautiful water falls to the north and south), hiking, shopping in the Whistler Village, dining at a variety of restaurants-- the best being the Rimrock (thanks for the recommendation, Staci), and riding the Peak to Peak Tram which is billed as the highest and longest of its kind in the world!  We looked down and saw four bears from our overhead gondola!  While at the top of the mountain, it started to snow which is always a treat for urbanities such as DK and Gailee.  The trip ended with an expedited return flight lasting just 2 and a quarter hours thanks to a tailwind.  We'll return to Canada in the future with an eye on Montreal and Lake of the Woods, where i enjoyed perhaps the favorite vacation of my youth.

Dkdogdaddy -- an explanation of the nickname

What's a sixty-year-old doing with a nickname more appropriate for a cool, young, hip, homeboy-type?  It's a tag I received many years ago from my former young adult buds who have moved along with me into geriatric status.  There were "Gmurdog" and "Brad Daddy" to name a couple.  The bestowing of the nickname was an unofficial statement of acceptance into the crowd.  It stuck with me for decades.  One member of my family has mispronounced the "dk" at the front as "decay", which is not funny.  Nevertheless, I must reveal at the beginning of this blog that I am a mismatch for the cool, youthful moniker. I am a self-described old guy with gray hair, with the exception of one wild hair which will never turn gray!