Andrew & Shannon's Wedding - Day 3

Sharon made an early breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast. Afterwards, for the second day in a row, I went out for an early morning run. I started north of Westport on Highway 1 for about a mile before I headed back to the Switzer Farm. Looping around the farm, I stopped and visited with the wedding party. By the time I got back to the house, I covered about 3 3/4 miles.

In the mid-morning, Sharon and I went back to the wedding venue to set up a few things. With some help from Kellen and Spencer, we got everything set up for the sparkler send off. We then drove down to the cliff where the actual wedding ceremony was going to take place. We pre-positioned a couple of tables, a pot and crystal vessels of water and sand. During the ceremony, they were going to pot a plant.

Back at the house, we got cleaned up. We headed back to the Switzer Farm about 1:45 pm. I ended up having to carry the plant for the potting ceremony down to the cliffs in my suit. As I was walking down, the fog started to roll in. Thankfully, it cleared back up in about 30 minutes and was beautiful for the rest of the day!

People started to show up about 2:30 pm. At one point, I wandered up to the house where Drew and a group were playing music in the front room. I bounced back and forth between the house and the barn for about an hour.

Sharon and I were part of the wedding procession walking down to the cliff from the house. As my sister Lee Ann posted, it was the longest walk to the altar ever.

It was a very nice wedding ceremony. Jack started it off with an e.e. cummings reading. The program for the ceremony is here.

We had an opportunity to be part of the family pictures. I am looking forward to getting a copy of the photo of Sharon, Jack, Drew, Shannon and I for the Christmas card.

I enjoyed the rest of evening immensely. Our table at dinner included the Wallens, Tomasins, Snipes, Larkins, my sister Lee Ann and her husband Dean and my sister Sharon. I wandered around the long farm table repeatedly to visit with everyone.

Shannon's mom and dad and the best man Spencer made nice speeches and toasts after dinner. I never did see them cut a cake...

Madi Sipes and her band played a long set followed by a DJ. I spent a while sitting and talking to Kyle late in the evening. The sparkler send off at the end of the evening was a success. It was after 11 pm by the time we drove back to the rental.

Andrew & Shannon's Wedding - Day 2

Up early, I went out for a 2 3/4 mile run. I ran up to Switzer Farm and looped around the 20 acre property. With the wedding party staying on site, I stopped and visited. I ran through the very small town and then down on to the Westport Headlands beach before heading back to the house.

Back at the VRBO, I rallied Sharon and Jack. We went back to the Switzer Farm and had brunch with the wedding party.

Dropping Sharon and Jack back at the rental, I drove back to the wedding venue. I spent the morning and early afternoon helping get everything set up. I staged the wine for the Shandrewpalooz. From the main parking lot on the property, you have to cross a bridge and walk through a barn to get to the house. We hung a wide variety of pictures from all of the families along one wall of the barn. It was a very cool space.

Eventually, I headed back to the VRBO and got cleaned up. It was really nice to have the place so close to the wedding venue.

At 3:00 pm, every one got together for the rehearsal. It is about one-fifth of a mile walk from the house down to the spot on the cliffs where Andrew and Shannon are getting married. We walked through the ceremony.

The rehearsal dinner was on the front porch of the house. Sharon and I hosted the dinner. We supplied wine paired with each course. The menu is here. Drew's mom made a decision not to attend.

My toast for the rehearsal dinner was an epic fail. More on that in a future post.

After dinner, they invited all of the wedding guests to an evening of music that they billed as the Shandrewpalooz. Tomasins, Wallens, Snipes, Larkins and my sister Lee Ann and her husband Dean joined the festivities. I will admit to being over served...

Sharon, Jack and I wandered back to the rental after 10 pm. Sharon and Jack drove back, while I enjoyed the walk.

Andrew & Shannon's Wedding - Day 1

Up early, we loaded up the car. With all of the stuff that we are taking for the wedding, I bought some racks for the Volvo last Sunday and put on the Yakima box.

We rolled about 8:40 am. The plan for lunch was a wine and food pairing at the Goldeneye Winery in the Anderson Valley. With Jack's 21st birthday last month, this is the first time that we have taken him wine tasting.

We first stopped in the Anderson Valley with the Sanborns in January. Although it is off the beaten path, there are definitely some other stops that we would love to make in this area.

With a quick stop in Fort Bragg for some flowers, we rolled into Westport at 3:30 pm. We are spending three nights at a VRBO called Heart Song right on the ocean. I rented it right after Drew and Shannon decided on a venue.

We unpacked the car and got settled into the house. Sharon and I were both extremely pleased with the house. Set back about 75 feet over the cliffs, it has a wonderful view of the ocean.

After relaxing and enjoying the property, we headed over to Switzer Farm. This is the venue for the wedding. It is a restored 1884 Victorian farmhouse that sits atop 22 private oceanfront acres. We had a chance to visit with Drew and Shannon and the rest of the wedding party.

Eventually, we wandered back to the house and barbecued steaks for dinner. Jack and I finished the night watching Tampa Bay beat Carolina on Thursday Night Football.

Jack is back

Jack caught a nonstop United flight from Dulles to Sacramento. Scheduled to leave about 5 pm, it was delayed about 45 minutes. He landed about 8:40 pm. I scooped him up.

With Drew and Shannon's wedding on Saturday, it is going to be a crazy couple of days.

Cars Land

August 17, 2019 at 10:27 am

150,850 steps

With 150,000 weekly steps for the first time in three months, I topped 140,000 steps for the fifth week in a row!

Volvo XC60 T8 - Day 304

As of August 28, I had owned the Volvo for ten months. I have driven 10,813 miles. I am averaging 1,081 miles per month.

The good. I am still loving the vehicle. Typically, when I get into the car, I plug in my iPhone. Using Carplay, I will start a podcast and put my destination into Waze. During July and August, I was working in Marysville. One of the days in August, Waze routed me back to Roseville and up Highway 65 to get to there. As I got closer to Marysville, it routed me off the freeway and through Olivehurst. It turned out that I missed two major accidents: one on Highway 99 and one on Highway 70! Needless to say, I love the Carplay integration.

The bad. For the second time in ten months, the car stopped charging on the supplied cable. I took the vehicle back to the dealer. Niello Volvo blamed me for mistreating the cable. I was very grumpy that they were accusing me. I worked very hard to be particularly careful with the second cable. The cable is a AeroVironment TurboCord. Interesting, some number of these cables supplied with the 2019 Volvo XC60s were recalled due to failed capacitors. I would love to find an electrical engineer to evaluate the cable...

Sparkler Send Off

After working out in the morning, Sharon and I spent the afternoon working to get a number of things organized for next weekend's celebration.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel - Season One

Last Saturday night, Sharon and I finished watching season one of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Season One premiered on March 17, 2017, on Prime Video.

The show stars Rachel Bresnahan (Rachel in House of Cards) as Miriam "Midge" Maisel. Marin Hinkle (Judith on Two and a Half Men) and Tony Shalhoub (Wings and Monk) feature in supporting roles as her parents. Bresnahan plays a housewife in 1958 New York City who discovers she has a knack for stand-up comedy.

The series received critical acclaim and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy in 2017 and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2018. Additionally, Bresnahan won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series in 2018 and two consecutive Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Musical or Comedy in 2018 and 2019.

Season one is very good. I recommend it. I heard a podcast talk recently about how hard it is to incorporate stand-up comedy into a movie or television series. This show nails it.

Throwback Thursday - BIC Venturi Speakers - Spring 1976

In a somewhat bizarre sequence of events, I stumbled across this picture on the internet. Taken at Drew's Mirror Wall studios, I was stunned to see the two BIC Venturi speakers. I bought those speakers over forty years ago in the spring of 1976 during my freshman year at college.

Expressing my surprise to Drew that he still had them, he said that it was "meaningful to have them around because they were probably my first source of recorded music and they are handy bookends and speaker holders."

Cars Land

August 16, 2019 at 6:03 pm

Wait Till Next Year by William Goldman and Mike Lupica

My book for August was Wait Till Next Year: The Story of a Season When What Should've Happened Didn't, and What Could've Gone Wrong Did by William Goldman and Mike Lupica. This was one of the books mentioned on The Sports Repodders Podcast in March.

William Goldman was an American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He first came to prominence in the 1950s as a novelist before turning to screenwriting. He won Academy Awards for his screenplays Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and All the President's Men (1976). His other works include his thriller novel Marathon Man and comedy/fantasy novel The Princess Bride, both of which he adapted for the film versions.

The book follows the year 1987 from the perspective of a New York Sports fan. It looks at the seasons of the Mets, Yankees, Knicks, Nets, Gaints and Jets with a little bit of Columbia University football thrown in. In 1986, the Mets had won the World Series beating the Red Sox, while the Giants had won their first Super Bowl against the Broncos in early 1987. The 1987 NFL season included a strike and the use of replacement players.

Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden feature prominently in stories. Golden was suspended for drug use at the beginning of the 1987 season. I saw a depressing documentary about Strawberry and Gooden several years ago.

I was luke warm about the book while I was reading it. Sitting and thinking about the book to write this, I appreciate it more than I thought.

140,458 steps

With a late Sunday night neighborhood walk with Tiber, I topped more than 140,000 steps for the fourth straight week.

Golf Handicap

Ancil Hoffman with the Sanborns

Teeing off Friday morning at 11:16 am, Sharon and I played golf with the Sanborns at Ancil Hoffman. I struggled with the first two holes, but eventually settled down and shot a 111. Given that I am trying to more strict about counting my strokes, I feel pretty good about that score. I ended up with one par and four bogeys. My chipping is a dumpster fire. In addition to struggling on the first two holes, I lost a bushel of strokes around the greens. It took us about 4 hours and 20 minutes to play eighteen.

At the urging of Marlene over the last year, I now have a handicap. The GHIN handicap is here.

Sharon shot a 104. She had a 53 on the front nine and a 51 on the back nine. Sharon is striking the ball very constantly.

The four of us finished the day with dinner at our house. I barbecued a couple of filet mignons. Sharon made Italian flat beans and baked potatoes.

Jack's 21st Birthday!

Happy 21st Birthday! Jack

Celebrating Jack's Birthday!

Teenager Jenson Brooksby facing life-changing choice

Our neighbor's son qualified for the US Open last year and lost in the first round. He qualified again this year and won this first round match.

Teenager Jenson Brooksby facing life-changing choice after US Open win

Jenson Brooksby is not making this any easier on himself.

But if he keeps doing what he did Monday, the decision might just be made for him.

The 18-year-old American captured his first Grand Slam win by beating former Wimbledon finalist Tomas Berdych 6-1, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the U.S. Open.

By advancing to the second round of the main draw, which he got into by winning three qualifying matches last week, Brooksby is owed $100,000. But he can only accept it if he gives up his scholarship to Baylor, where he is signed to enroll next January, and turns pro.

“It gets tougher the more I win here,” said Brooksby, who added that his decision is still “up in the air.”
Brooksby said he plans on seeing how the rest of the tournament plays out and where his world ranking stands over the next few months before making a final decision. He entered Monday at No. 394.

For now, he is just enjoying the ride.

“It’s amazing,” said Brooksby, who will face No. 17 Nikoloz Basilashvili in the second round. “[Berdych] has been a very good player, obviously, throughout the last decade and more. I’m just very excited to get through today.”

The Sacramento native met Berdych on Court 13, and by the end of the match, it was standing room only at least three rows deep, with fans standing on bleachers from Court 14 to get a peek at the upset. The crowd roared as Brooksby’s final forehand zoomed past the 33-
year-old Berdych to end the match.

“I think the fans like me a lot, which I’m very appreciative for,” Brooksby said. “I love their support.”

Later in the day, the crowd swelled around a different backcourt as another American teenager tried to pull off a win of his own. Zachary Svajda — who, at 16 years old earned a wild card after winning the USTA Boys under-18 national championship — took the first two sets before falling to 37-year-old Italian Paolo Lorenzi 3-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2. Svajda appeared to be battling leg cramps as the marathon match, lasting 4:20, wore on.

Brooksby, meanwhile, had just finished signing every last autograph by the time the next match on his court began. He then walked through the concourse mostly unrecognized, save for a few fans who stopped him to take a photo. If he gets through another round, the blond-haired kid who wears a broken-shell necklace may not be so anonymous, especially with fans craving to find the next big American tennis player.

“I know that I’m American and they want Americans to do well,” Brooksby said. “I appreciate that they want me to do well.”

Brooksby was here last year, too, as a wild card after winning the USTA Boys’ 18s national championship. He lost to John Millman in straight sets, but came back to Flushing a year later feeling better prepared against Berdych, the former world No. 4 who has battled injuries this year.

“I wasn’t really ready for that stage yet last year because I hadn’t played even [ATP] challengers for the most part,” Brooksby said.

“Now I’ve played more challengers and bigger tournaments, so I’m more ready for this stage this year.”

Whether he remains on the big stage or opts for college remains to be seen. Brian Boland, the men’s coach at Baylor, was in attendance Monday to see Brooksby take down Berdych. Another win would give Brooksby the option of earning $163,000 — or slightly less than four years of tuition at Baylor.

“It’s definitely [a] financial [decision],” Brooksby said. “I would get four years of free college if I went just for one semester, compared with the money I earn here. Just gotta figure all that out.”

Jack's 2019 Fall Semester Classes

Today is the first day of classes for Jack's senior year at Georgetown. His classes include:

TRT 270 - Adv International Business

This course analyzes the international business environment (IBE), defined as the economic, political, and social factors that shape firms’ global strategies. We seek to explain the ways in which—and the reasons why—countries differ in macroeconomic and regulatory policies relevant to the firm. The course places special emphasis on the political economy of the IBE, which means that we study how international and domestic political forces influence continuity and change in the rules governing international economic
transactions.

OPIM 274 - Business Forecasting

This course builds upon the regression models studied in OPIM 173 and related introductory courses in statistics. The aim is to further develop statistical modeling skills for business applications, with particular emphasis upon time series, which form the inputs for sales forecasting and production planning as well as much financial and economic activity. The reason for examining time series is to enable us to make forecasts and to ascribe to those forecasts an adequate measure of the uncertainty surrounding the forecasts.

• Why do we forecast? The reason that businesses forecast is to aid the process of planning.
• Why plan? Planning enables you to modify your actions in response to potential challenges and opportunities. If a forecast does not have the potential to change your actions, it is useless. If you do not respond to change your business probably will not survive very long.

If we accept the premise that forecasting is vital to a business, how should we carry out the task? We must first recognize that there is no such thing as a universal best method, but rather we need to develop an arsenal of different approaches and to recognize when each approach is appropriate.

The choice of forecasting method depends upon:

• The objectives of the exercise [e.g. short-term production planning, investment planning, medium-term budgetary planning, long-term strategic planning]
• The importance of the task in hand [financial impact per item forecast, # of items]
• The extent to which other variables can affect the outcome, and whether or not those factors are under our control [e.g. YES: own production; NO: GDP, weather]
• The quantity and quality of data available, and when those observations become available [e.g. macroeconomic variables, new movies]
• The number of forecasts required [e.g. 10,000 product lines; US unemployment]

The course will focus primarily upon quantitative methods for forecasting, ranging from purely extrapolative approaches to causal modeling, but with some coverage of judgmental methods.

Model building and forecasting are not passive activities. Students will be expected to bring their laptops to class and to work on different forecasting assignments both in class and in team-based projects.

ARTH 255 - Global Contemporary Art

This survey course provides a general introduction to global contemporary art. After providing a brief grounding in 20th-century modernism and socio-political events of recent decades, this course considers a broad thematic range: pop and conceptual art; the emergence of performance, installation, and new media; earth works and site specificity; identity-based and institution-critical art; relational aesthetics and new modes of spectacle and digital consumerism; and the emergence of the global biennial and gallery system. This course assumes no prior knowledge and introduces students to a constellation of artists from around the world—from Cindy Sherman to Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei, Lygia Clark to Kara Walker and Walid Raad, and many more.

ARTH 431 - Museum Architecture

Museum architecture shapes visitors’ art experience and plays an integral role in the life of a city or region. In this course students will think critically about the architecture of the art museum. Questions to be considered include: How does architecture contribute to a museum’s visiting culture? What is architecture’s appropriate role – should buildings be at the forefront of a museum experience or remain as a backdrop? What challenges arise when designing buildings for contemporary art? How have signature buildings impacted an area’s economic standing? The work of designers such as Renzo Piano, Tadao Ando, Zaha Hadid and Snøhetta will be explored. Case studies addressing institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Louvre will also be analyzed. Students will gain familiarity with field scholarship, visit multiple area museums and complete writing and presentation assignments.

2019 Spring Semester
2018 Fall Semester
2018 Spring Semester
2017 Fall Semester

Splash Mountain

August 16, 2019 at 10:51 pm

141,079 steps

For the third week in a row, I had more than 140,000 steps. The week included four treadmill runs, two Peloton One spin classes and a Saturday morning run around Ancil Hoffman Park.

Jack back to school

Finishing up two weeks at home, Sharon and I took Jack to the airport at 8:15 pm on Sunday night. He caught a 10:20 pm United redeye flight nonstop from Sacramento to Dulles. He was on the ground in DC at 6:10 am on Monday morning.

Jack caught an Uber at 6:40 am and was back at his apartment by 7:10 am. He will be back in less than two and a half weeks for Drew's wedding.

It is very difficult for me to believe that he is starting his senior year at Georgetown!