Holiday Gift Book Suggestions From Dick Jordan

If you're still holiday shopping 'til you're dropping and don't want to go out in the rainy weather to finish up, here are gift book recommendations that I've posted (as a guest blogger) on the Book Passage Bookstore blog.

You can order all of the books on-line (except one --- but the computer glitch causing that will be fixed in a couple of days).

These all are books that I own and I've met or know all of the authors.

There is, of course, a rather Shameless Self-Promotional Blurb for Me at the end of the blog post, and I've even mentioned in one of the books.

NEW! Mobile (Phone) Meandering Now Even Easier!

A few months ago Dick Jordan set up a separate copy of the Meandering in Marin on Tuesdays blog (hosted by WordPress.org; the original Meandering blog is hosted by Blogger) that was “optimized” for reading on mobile devices (like Dick’s iPhone).  This meant that Dick had to upload each blog post twice, and edit two blogs instead of one.

Blogger now has made its hosted blogs much easier to read on smartphones: Type in the URL (Website address) for the Meandering blog (http://www.meanderingtuesdays.blogspot.com) into the Web browser on your phone or do a Google search for “Meandering in Marin on Tuesdays”, and then bookmark it (or, on an iPhone, add it to your Home Screen) so you can easily find it in the future.

The “mobile version” of the blog has larger type so it’s easier to read on a little cell phone browser screen, and (unlike the WordPress.org mobile site) you’ll find the tabs for the different pages (e.g., “Upcoming Hikes”) right at the top of the screen. )If you want to view the blog as it appears on a regular computer screen, just scroll to the bottom of the screen on your phone and tap of “View web version.”  To switch back, tap “View mobile version”).

Alas, the little slideshow window in the blog won’t show up on Apple devices (iPad, iPod Touch, or iPhone) which don’t support the Adobe “Flash” technology that operates the slideshow.  (If you have any Android phone, go the mobile version of the blog, and then let Dick know if the slideshow plays on your phone). But it you click on the “Photo Albums” tab at the top of the screen, you can select any of the Picasa Web albums (e.g., “Latest Hike Photos”) and view the photos taken during our hikes.

Until everyone gets familiar with the new mobile version of the Blogger blog, Dick will continue to post updates to the WordPress.org version. 

Holiday Hiking Hiatus

Just a quick reminder from the Meandering in Marin on Tuesdays blog that we’ve got a long holiday break in our hiking schedule.

The next Winterim hike is the 1/11/11 - Alpine Dam to Bon Tempe Dam Shuttle Hike, followed by two more outings on 1/18 and 1/25.

Registration for the College of Marin Winter hiking series opens on January 3rd.

Dick Jordan and Rick Steves On The Radio

Being interviewed by Rick Steves is a fun way to share your travel experiences with a wider audience than just the friends and family who read your “Tweets” or Facebook posts from the road.  Dick Jordan was “interviewed” twice by Rick during the January 2010 radio show recording sessions.  Over the next few months, fame and fortune, and maybe a career in movies (“I’m ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille) awaited Dick’s “Rick On The Radio” debut.

Dick became a “radio star” when “More Roadfood USA; Brittany and Normandy” was broadcast on May 29, 2010.  While his interview with Rick was not included in the broadcast itself, it is part of a “Web extra” streaming audio file that you can play by clicking here.  (His comments about touring Normandy by rental car run from 4:48 to 7:15).

Dick got another nearly three minutes of radio fame on July 10, 2010, when the show “Affordable London; Ancient Britain” aired.  Once again his interview with Rick was not part of the program that actually aired, but runs at the beginning of the “Web extra” streaming audio file. This is Rick’s description of what he and Dick discussed:  “Caller Dick in San Anselmo, California describes one of his favorites finds from a London city walk that Rick recommends in his guidebook, and suggests cathedral concerts as a worthwhile free activity in London.”