Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Aloha
Coming home from Hawaii tomorrow, kind of dreading that. As well as the flight across the ocean in the middle of the night. I've gotten used to the weather always being perfect, not too hot or too cold, but just right. Did I mention I like the beach? See my pictures, and please enjoy the song I made and looped a few times on my souvenir ukulele, Thats my breakfast sizzling in the background.Saturday, July 28, 2007
The Inevitably New Home Run King
On June 26, I had the privilege of watching Barry Bonds break the all time intentionally walked player four times in one night. Though it wasn't exactly the record I was hoping to see get broken when I bought the tickets in the early season, as a fan of baseball I enjoyed the extremely expensive experience none the less.
Dinger 754 went over the wall for Bary Bonds last night, and now for the moment we have all been waiting for. First will come the tying home run, and then next we'll have the video footage of Barry breaking the all the time home run record that will be replayed until it makes permanent copies into our mental imagery. Oh, and the value of that ball!
I like the excitement of seeing a milestone being set that has never been set before. Though there are some that would ban the Barry Bonds name from history books, if they could.
I see a double standard. American society in general is responsible for the dark cloud of steroids and baseball, not any one person. Most Americans trust that drugs can improve themselves for the better, for whatever reason. It has become part of our culture. We are told to ask our doctors about different drugs 50 times a day, and most of us take prescription drugs for one thing or another. We keep the pharmaceutical companies in business (putting it lightly) They provide development and distribution a wide variety of drugs for us to take. I don't see how it is Barry Bonds, or any other player's fault for practicing this (relatively new) American value.
Most of the accused were following the rules (or lack of) that Major League Baseball asked them to follow at the time, and if they continue to follow the new and improved rules, then what have they done wrong? The American media are just doing what it is they do best and blowing something out of proportion to generate public interest to generate advertising dollars.
Like it or not, Barry's achievement is a piece of American history pie.
Dinger 754 went over the wall for Bary Bonds last night, and now for the moment we have all been waiting for. First will come the tying home run, and then next we'll have the video footage of Barry breaking the all the time home run record that will be replayed until it makes permanent copies into our mental imagery. Oh, and the value of that ball!
I like the excitement of seeing a milestone being set that has never been set before. Though there are some that would ban the Barry Bonds name from history books, if they could.
I see a double standard. American society in general is responsible for the dark cloud of steroids and baseball, not any one person. Most Americans trust that drugs can improve themselves for the better, for whatever reason. It has become part of our culture. We are told to ask our doctors about different drugs 50 times a day, and most of us take prescription drugs for one thing or another. We keep the pharmaceutical companies in business (putting it lightly) They provide development and distribution a wide variety of drugs for us to take. I don't see how it is Barry Bonds, or any other player's fault for practicing this (relatively new) American value.
Most of the accused were following the rules (or lack of) that Major League Baseball asked them to follow at the time, and if they continue to follow the new and improved rules, then what have they done wrong? The American media are just doing what it is they do best and blowing something out of proportion to generate public interest to generate advertising dollars.
Like it or not, Barry's achievement is a piece of American history pie.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
The 4th of July
On the 4th July, in the middle of a 2 week road trip, I found myself in the town of Trinidad in Humboldt County, California. I started off with some early morning tide pooling on the shores of the Pacific Ocean,
after that I ate some oyster and eggs breakfast at the pier cafe, all-American style. I then enjoyed an easy hike, even for having a full stomach. It looped around the peninsula in Trinidad to somewhat of a view of an old lighthouse. The ocean rocks were much more impressive the lighthouse. Here is the GPS track of that hike with some pictures that I took.
Later that day we wandered down to and around Arcata. Quite a bit going on, I couldn't tell the bums from the city officials. Did you know that Arcata was the first city in the U.S. to elect a majority of its city council members from the green party? Yeah, hippies. It was a bit of culture shock for someone born and raised and living in Conservativeville. And, how could I not love a place that prides itself on their minor league baseball team, The Humboldt Crabs? They play in a 1,500 seat stadium, and their hats are classy, so I bought one.
But, it wasn't the baseball that made me feel like an American, and it wasn't standing on an edge of America herself, it wasn't even the pizza I ate for lunch. The thing that sparked my pride in old glory was this-
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Old Limber Pine Loop
In August of 2006 I hiked this trail on my way to Bear Lake, with the objective of finding a nearby geocache. The complete loop is about 1.4 miles and it is as easy as they come. A bit of a steep beginning, but then evens out to an slight climb to the top after that. There isn't much elevation gain, from 7795 ft. to 7942 ft.
Access the trail by parking in the designated parking lot. Just pay attention to the road signs. There are a few informational "nature-walk" signs located along the trail as well. It is just off the road in Logan Canyon on Utah State Highway 89 at the Bear Lake Summit, just before the descent towards the lake.
The Old Limber Pine is a group of 5 trees that grew into each other to become one claw looking tree. The highlight of the hike (well, besides the 560 year old tree) is the view looking down upon the bright blueness of Bear Lake.
Access the trail by parking in the designated parking lot. Just pay attention to the road signs. There are a few informational "nature-walk" signs located along the trail as well. It is just off the road in Logan Canyon on Utah State Highway 89 at the Bear Lake Summit, just before the descent towards the lake.
The Old Limber Pine is a group of 5 trees that grew into each other to become one claw looking tree. The highlight of the hike (well, besides the 560 year old tree) is the view looking down upon the bright blueness of Bear Lake.
Labels: Geocaching, GIS, GPS, Hiking, Maps, Places in Utah, Travel
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Days 8, 9 & 10
July 14, 15, 16
The three days that we needed to drive all the way back home, one day from Seattle to Spokane, the next day from Spokane to Clarke Canyon Resorvoir in Montana, the next day we went from there to home in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Labels: Travel
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 7
July 13
Today had Seattle on the schedule. We stopped for a some buggy Dungeness Dity, and then took a quick look at Canada, then and onward to the Bainbridge Ferry.
Once we finally found the hotel where we had made reservations, we headed over to the famous Pikes Place Market for some wandering. We ended up at the Pike Place Pub for dinner and beer and afterwards we took a cab to the Pyramid Ale house for even more beer. After that we stopped into a little Jazz club and watched some crazy dancin. Then we stopped at an Irish pub for yet even more drinks.Then it was obviously time for bed.
Labels: Travel
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 6
July 12
We woke up early packed up quick and off we ran to catch the lowest tide of the year down at Ruby Beach. Sometimes I wish that I lived closer to the ocean, so that I could see it more often. I love walking on sand, and the sounds of waves sliding up on the beach. But, one of the best
things about the ocean is tide pools!We walked around and took pictures of the starfish and anemone. I threw around a stick for Sydney, after feeling it was safe to let her off the leash for a bit. She loves the beach too! We spent a few hours and then decided that we should get heading towards our next destination, which we weren't exactly sure where that was.
We drove North on Highway 101, stopped in Forks for a cache, to stock up at the store, and ate lunch. Then we continued on, stopping for a quick hike to Marymere Falls in the rain. Then a little driving again, past Lake Crescent, then through Port Angeles. We decided to head up the mountain to see Hurricane Ridge. When I arrived to the top, buried inside a cloud, I felt a bit cheated that nobody had mentioned the detail about how a clear day can make or break this experience. Luckily, the gift shop had numerous photos of what such a day could be like. I'm sure it is just spectacular!
We ended up at the KOA campground in Sequim, where we checked in to one of those small cabins. After we all took much needed showers, we ignored the rules and the four of us drank a Big Ol' can of Grolsch beer while sitting in the hot tub.
Labels: Travel
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 5
July 11
We awoke on the shore of Lake Quinault, made some breakfast sandwiches, and headed for the Quinault Rain Forest Loop Trail. I saw the sign about keeping your dog on a leash, but Sydney wanted to be FREE, so I let her loose. Not 5 minutes later I discover her on a mossy hill, rolling and rolling around in something. I had to take her by the collar to get her away from it. It didn't take long to figure out that it was SHIT! The worst smelling SHIT that has ever drifted up my nostrils! OOOEEEY GOOOEEY SHIT! "OH SHIT!" I said to myself. As the rest of the party caught up to us with their hands on their noses asking "what was that smell?" I had to point out the slime that covered Sydney's back. She was so proud of herself, and she didn't understand why we didn't love her anymore. We turned back the way we came, the rest of group far in front of me and Syd, away from the stench. I tried to figure out what to do. I didn't want her in my car with that smelly SHIT all over her, we still had to live in that car for another 5 days. The lake wasn't too far away, yeah that is it,
I was going to walk down there and throw her in....Problem solved. Until luckily, word came from ahead that there was a spigot and hose in the parking lot. She got hosed down. She got pissed off at me. She remained on leash for the rest of the trip.We finished the hike that we started and moved on with the agenda. Our next stop was the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park, where we hiked the "Hall of Mosses" trail. Afterwards we found a camp at Minnie Petersen Campground where it rained pretty much the whole night. We set up our tents underneath a tree for a little more dryness, which seemed to do the trick.
Labels: Travel
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 4
July 10 Most of this day was spent in the car as we made the commute from Yakima to Lake Quinault. The drive was magnificently scenic. We drove past Mt. Rainier, it was one of the many times along the trip that I thought to myself, "It sure would be nice to have another day to spend here!".
Labels: Travel
Monday, July 31, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 3
July 9
I woke up early to take Sydney to a dogsitter in the area and then returned to the playground/camp for some breakfast. After that we had a day of tasting wine at wineries scheduled. We spent the day in the Rattlesnake Hills area near the town of Zillah.
I don't know how many we ended up hitting, but these are the top 5 that stick out in my mind.
Maison de Padgett was probably my favorite of the bunch, mostly because of their ports, but also because of their non-traditional labels that decorate their bottles. They also had a cool garden area that we walked about in for a little while. We ended up getting a bottle of the coffee flavored port named "Smoking Gun" as well as a bottle of their "Rings of Faith" red wine.Paradisos del Sol was fun. I liked this one because they paired each of their wines with a different food. (Which they have some of the recipes on their website.) They were all pretty good, especially the marshmallow that was toasted over a candle. Also they had some strange stuff brewed from some kind of root that had an interesting story about only being able to harvest it every few years. I forgot the details. Anyhow, we paid for the tasting of it and it was good, but the bottle was too expensive for anyone in our group spring.
Silver Lake, aside from the herd of old people we came in behind, the place was quite awesome. I really liked the art that was on display. They were modern versions of Pacific Northwest tribal art. I would love to have one for myself, but it was way out of my price range for wall decorations. They had a Chenin Blanc, which I had never heard of nor tasted. The lady working the tasting bar opened a bottle special for me to taste, because I asked about it. It was good and we ended up buying a couple bottles of it.
Two Mountain Winery I believe was the first stop. They had a couple of dogs that just returned from a swim somewhere nearby. I couldn't help but to think about how Sydney was fairing at the dogsitter. The tasting room was unique. It was a kind of garage looking place with some chalk drawings on the floor and a little gift shop. We stole a couple cherries from the cherry trees after the tasting.
Bonair Winery was fun, not because of their wine specifically, but because we hit up the "That's Just Grape!" geocache as we left.
Labels: Travel
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 2
July 8
I think we all awoke to our stomachs feeling a little green from all the drinkin' we did the night before. Cam whipped us all up a tall fruit smoothie in his blender, that I think was the perfect hangover cure that I've ever had. Before we took to the road again, we decided to float the Boise River. The float was awesome, like a lazy river ride with some moments of excitement. I might say that this event was the most relaxing experience of the entire trip. After that we grabbed some good food at Papa Joe's.
Then we headed towards Yakima, Washington. We arrived later than I expected to because of the unscheduled river ride. We checked into the Trailers Inn RV Park where I had made reservations. I was disappointed in the "tent site" they had. It was basically a small patch of grass in the corner of the property. If ever I visit Yakima, tent style, I will most definitely be staying at the KOA instead. I am pretty sure the tent sites there would be much nicer than what we had. I spent a good hour and a half driving around in a foreign city looking for a grocery store. Finally I found a Safeway, waited in line for a half hour to buy dinner, and then returned to the campground to cook and eat a late meal before I went to bed.
Labels: Travel
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Road Trip Recap - Day 1
I recently returned from a week long road trip that I am deeming truly awesome! We were on the road July 7-16. I love traveling, especially when the only thing you have to do is what you want to do. Nothing like a broken down car or even a flat tire happened, which is good. We traveled about 2000 miles and spent a little over 300 dollars on gasoline. Myself, Crystal and our dog Sydney traveled along side our two good friends Brandon and Cami. The most disappointing aspect of the whole trip has to be that we didn't have another week to see and do everything that I wanted to do. Oh well, I guess that is how it goes, but there never was a dull moment. Here is the first installment of a day by day account of what happened.
July 7
We left Salt Lake City sometime in the morning after eating an breakfast full of anticipation at Over The Counter, one of the best greasy breakfasts in the whole valley. From there we headed
North towards Idaho. Our final destination being Boise, Idaho. We stopped in Twin Falls, Idaho to find the Costco location to gas up there. Then with some misguided information from a GPS device, we drove a ten mile circle around Shoshone Falls. When we finally ended up there we did some viewing, some picture taking, some Frisbee fetching, and then onward to Boise we went.When we finally arrived in Boise, and found my friend Cam's place we scoped out his newly purchased house and lounged for a bit on his back patio. After deciding that we were all pretty hungry we headed toward the downtown area where I ate a Reuben sandwich from the Bitter Creek Ale House and drank a delicious beer or two. After that we went for a little stroll around the city. We found a fountain and I ran trough it. My company thought I was bit crazy (OK, maybe a little drunk) but it was hot and they have no idea how nice it felt. Afterwards we played some Frisbee golf at Ann Morrison Park and then headed out for a night of bar hoppin. Later we treated our drunken stomachs to some highly acclaimed street cart hot dogs and nachos. mmmm....mmmmm!
Labels: Travel
