CALIFORNIA...PT 5...ROSE PARADE DECORATING DAY

By

Minuet in G

"MinnieG"

(a 1979 Argosy made by Airstream that wants to be in the parade)

Please, please, please...get me in that parade.

I know I would be a hit.

What's not to love???

Guess a girl can dream.!!!


Dreaming of being in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California

Vannie and Dave had reserved a time to help decorate the floats

several months ago.  One of those bucket list items.!!

The day finally arrived...9:00 - 1:00 was their time to work.

They had to sign wavers...guess no one wanted to be responsible for 

seniors falling off of a float while decorating.

They had to bring snacks, scissors, and wear old clothes.

I stayed back in Kuchipa at the beautiful RV spot
and kept dreaming of being in the parade.

Vannie said they got to the spot with no problems.

I think Dave must have been taking Vannie with the Rose Bowl stadium
in the background, but the porta-potties kinda messed up the picture...
well, need to know where those things are, too.

Honda Float
"The Power of Dreams"
"Our Hope for the Future"
Do you see that orange crown back of the poster?
The one by the top right hand corner...that's one of the projects
V and D worked on.

There's another orange crown...see it...

...but first they got the job of trimming petals off of these
dried "straw flowers" from Holland. These flowers originally were
grown in California, but because of the water shortage, they are not produced here anymore.
Because of their beautiful color, even after being dried, make them a wonderful flower
to use on the floats...but coming from Holland makes them more expensive.
Our task was to trim the darker petals off first, then pass to the next person to
trim off the brighter yellow ones.

They did such a great job, they were promoted to
actually getting on a float to glue some orange lentils on those crowns...messy job. 

orange lentils and lots of white glue...

There were huge tubs filled with all colors of lentils, dried flowers, seeds...

every color of the rainbow.

They received special instructions about this process.
...paint on the glue...then slap the lentils on...
Vannie said you could have cooked a pot of lentil soup
with what was stuck on her clothes.

There were volunteers everywhere.

Notice how this guy was trying to hold
his cardboard box under where he was gluing.
He was trying to save as many seeds as possible.

Green lentils...
"The soup is getting better"

This was the Chinese Airlines float.
V and D tried to get someone to tell then how much the sponsors
had to pay to enter a float...but everyone was very closed-mouthed. 

Louisiana Folks...what does this remind you of?
Yep...Mardi Gras...

Almond Breeze Float
"The Best Almonds Make the Best Milk"

Notice the bees on the Almond Breeze poster.
Here they are...
The white is coconut...black is onion seeds...yellow will be the straw flowers...

So many steps...lots left to do...

This one got an award, but not sure what.
"Passing the Touch"
"Years of Hope"
"Years of Courage"
Can you see something that is green toward the back of this float?
That's the Statue of Liberty...she is lying down while the work is being completed,
but will be upright for the parade.

This is part of the Liberty float.
Those pumpkin seeds were being glued on one seed at a time.


Amazon Studios Float
"Show the world who you really are"


OK...when Vannie showed me this one,
I realized if that bus could be on a float...I could to.
How am I going to do this?


Did you see the pine trees in the poster?
These girls are carefully gluing on bark (from bags of mulch).

Some of the old antique cars used to feature the parade grand marshals...
The cat walk above the cars are places that people can come to get a closer look at the floats.

Time to head back...
These palm trees were lining the streets on the Redland Universality campus.
Looks like a postcard. 

V and D decided to go back to the campsite by way of the old Route 66...
This cute little drive-through was sure reminiscent of the  50's.

Oh my goodness...
Dave said he had seen these tepees in pictures, but never in person.
...and there they were...Right on Route 66
The Wigwam Motel...circa 1949... $77 a night
Good Reviews
San Bernardino, CA

We are heading to the Airstream Rally on the 28th.
Will be there 5 nights...
Rose Parade
Band Performances
Equestrian Shows
Food, Fun, and Friends