Layover in Shanghai

On route home via Singapore in 2010, we had a drawn out layover in Shanghai. Numerous passport checks, security checks, a passport stamp (despite not leaving the airport), and hang ups at the boarding desk were made to feel endless due to a painful hangover I'd acquired celebrating our final night in the Lion City.  Our stop in Hong Kong on the way there seemed relaxed, but Shanghai seemed overrun with make-work checkpoints. Oh, China.   

All of those magnets I bought in Singapore also got me a private room for my luggage to be searched.  It was all kind of entertaining to be honest, and I had fun snapping pictures of our time chilling out in the airport. 

Salton Sea History Museum Closed?

About a week ago I was contacted by a man putting on an exhibition about the Salton Sea who wanted to know if I could provide scans of the vintage postcards that I'd shared on my blog.  I suggested that he could probably contact the Salton Sea museum, which Dave and I got a private tour of on our visit in 2010, and acquire the real ones for his exhibition as they are actually genuine postcards that were on sale in the Salton Sea Yacht Club in the sixties.

Sadly, he informed me that the museum had recently closed and was no longer there.  I was happy to send scans of my postcards, but was disappointed by the news.  In fact, a bit more research confirmed that the museum had been unable to secure a lease agreement with the Yacht Club.  

I'm still fascinated by how much has changed around the Salton Sea since my first visit in 2009, however the recent developments seem far from a surge of prosperity.  It was announced on the Museum's facebook page that they will be relocating to Mecca, CA and reopening on February 3, which is great for the sake of sharing the history, but it's not the Yacht Club. There were plans to relaunch the speed boat races also (like the ones they used to have in the sixties) but those plans have been postponed due to lack of sponsorship now.  

It's two steps forward and one step back at the Salton Sea.  

Inspiration Boards

I'm all about collecting.  If someone leaves me a cool note, if I like a picture, or if someone sends me a postcard, it's just one of the many opportunities I take to cycle inspiration around the bulletin boards above my desk.   

I think it's important to surround ourselves with things that trigger memories, influence our thoughts, and remind us of our aspirations.  My boards are busy, but purposely so. I like that I can still look at them and see something in a way I might not have before. It's a simple concept, but I like inspiration that comes cheap.

Here are some of the items on my boards at the moment.