MELBOURNE

Melbourne is absolutely wonderful. Very laid back compared to other parts of Austtralia. The people here are awesome. What is so funny is all the people that keep asking about My accent. We had one actress that spoke to us and asked me how do you speak like that? She is trying to master the California accent and wanted to practice with us. My response was "we are not the ones with the accents." Everyone laughed. The city reminds me a lot of Chicago. It has a river, tall buildings. However, in Ike Chicago, it is very laid back and not the "hussel" of a New York or Chicago. I really like this city. One more day left before we head home. Cant wait to see everyone. Love you! God Bless, Ottster

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

What a couple of days. Landed yesterday and we have hit the ground running. Yesterday, we visited several local grocery chains and met with buyers regarding the possibility of shipping blueberries to Australia. Today, we visited the capitol of Australia, Canberra. Beautiful area. We are getting ready to fly back to Sydney and then tomorrow, off to Melborne for the Australian Produce Marketing Association. For a place that is suppose to be in winter, the weather has been wonderful. Light rain this morning but overall, 60's which beats the 100 degrees back home. I am having issues uploading pictures, so I will try again later. Till tomorrow! God Bless, Ottster

ALASKA END OF WEEK

Alaska has been a blast! Just check these pics out....From Bald Eagles, to moose, to bears to elk and even agriculture, Alaska is a beautiful place. Saw many glaciers, mountains, lakes, and the finger water that goes into the Gulf of Alaska.

Coming home tomorrow, can't wait to see you.

God Bless,

Ottster!

CHICAGO

Well, here I am again in Chicago. Yesterday was an eventful day. After loosing my phone in a taxi cab, I have had to learn what it is like to be back in the stone age. Thank you wife for being understanding!

After the wild calls to try and find my phone, I went and saw a Chicago Whitesox game. Pretty awesome game...it went 14 innings with the Chi Sox winning 8-7.

This morning I walked the mile, went by the new Trump Tower and say the controversial statute of Marlyn Monroe. Finished the day off by attending a couple of meetings.

Hope everyone is doing well. Till Tomorrow!

God Bless,

Ottster!

P.S. I DID NOT FORGET!

WASHINGTON D.C. - Day 1&2

Howdy Squeeker and Moose!

Arrived in DC last night. Once we checked in, it began to snow. This morning when we awoke, the now became ice. All the water and snow had frozen, making the streets and sidewalks slick.

After breakfast, we went to the hill and met with congressional members to go over apple and blueberry issues. Very good day overall.

Tonight, I will be meeting up with a couple of my DC friends and then more congressional visits tomorrow.

Miss you, give mom hugs and kisses.

God Bless,

Ottster!

GRAND RAPIDS, MI

Greetings from MI. So far the Blueberry conference is going well. It is beautiful back here. The leaves have begun to change color. I was talking to a couple of local folks and they said that they get between 80 - 120 inches of snow. WOW!

Across the street there is museum and in the front are several art pieces. I took a couple of pictures. The first is a replica of one of the Apollo capsules that was used for the moon. The second is not a backgun, but an art sculpture of a frog watching TV.

Tomorrow, we go on a blueberry tour. Until next time,

God Bless,

Ottster

CHICAGO - DAY 1

In Chicago again for the yearly crop estimate. In the meantime, I had some downtime...of course I had to swing by the American Girl Store...unbelievable. They have a pet store, hospital and salon for the dolls. Not to mention every doll and girl matching outfit.

Then it was a walk down the mag mile where I passed by the famous water tower. This tower is just one block from where we are staying. Tonight, we will catch a Cub game and then off to meetings tomorrow.

Until then, God Bless,

Ottster!