Map of Sea Ranch Run

Using data from Runkeeper on my iPhone, I generated the following Google Map of my Sunday run when we were at Sea Ranch. I covered 8.96 miles down to the Gualala River Beach Park and back in one hour and 45 minutes.

As I have said before, this is one of my favorite places in the world to run.

California Historical Landmark #1035

We visit the light station and climbed to the top during our trip to Sea Ranch in January.

Point Arena Light Station
California State Historical Landmark #1035
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps
This landmark is located at 45500 Lighthouse Road, Point Arena, California. There are 7 other California State Historical Landmarks in Mendocino County. The GPS coordinates for this location are 38° 57' 16.3" N 123° 44' 25.6" W.

In 1989 the Point Arena Light Station was listed in the National Register of Historic Places for its statewide significance in the area of maritime history. Coastal traffic increased substantially during the 1860s, and heavy storms and fogs often made trips along the coast treacherous. The first buildings at the station were constructed in 1870 and were destroyed in 1906 during the San Francisco Earthquake. At that time the U. S. Lighthouse Service decided to use reinforced concrete in the light house replacement. Prior to this, reinforced concrete had not been employed in the construction of a California lighthouse. Thus, when the Point Arena Lighthouse began operation in 1908, it became the first lighthouse of reinforced concreted in the State. Strikingly situated between the Pacific Ocean to the west and rolling farmland on the east, the Point Arena Light Station retains the character and appearance of one hundred years ago.

To HIMSS19

I caught a 12:30 pm Southwest nonstop flight from Sacramento to Orlando. Boarding with A36, I got an aisle exit row seat. I spent most of the five plus hour flight working on my status report on the wifi and reading a book.

On the ground in Orlando, it was a zoo. Landing just after 8:30 pm, it took more than 45 minutes to get my luggage and then another 15 minutes to get an Uber. There was a herd of people waiting for Ubers and Lyfts. It was 10 pm by the time I got to the hotel.

I am attending the HIMSS [Health Information and Management Systems Society] Conference over the next several days at the Orange County Convention. Unlike Las Vegas last year, Orlando is very spread out. This is not going to be convenient...

South America Dinner

During the last two weeks of January, Tom did a fourteen day Princess cruise around the coast of South America. He said that his favorite stop was the Falkland Islands. Tom also raved about the Iguazu Falls. He had booked an excursion to Antartica, but there weren't enough people.

Sunday afternoon, Sharon and I went to Tom's house for a great South American dinner to celebrate the trip. The group included Tom, Jim, Eric and Ashley, Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia, Sharon and I.

Can You Ever Forgive Me?

With the 91st Academy Awards scheduled for February 24, Sharon and I are working our way through the last few major nominated movies that we haven't seen. Saturday night, Sharon, and I watched Can You Ever Forgive Me? on the AppleTV. The movie is based on Lee Israel's 2008 memoir of the same name.

The moves stars Melissa McCarthy as Lee Israel. It also features Richard E. Grant as Jack Hock, Jane Curtin, Anna Deavere Smith, and Ben Falcone in supporting roles. McCarthy and Grant earned respective Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor nominations at the 91st Academy Awards, the 76th Golden Globe Awards and 72nd British Academy Film Awards.

The movies follows Lee Israel as she tries to revitalize her failing writing career by forging letters from deceased authors and playwrights. In real life, it is estimated that she foraged more than 400 letters. The film's title was taken from an apologetic line in a letter forged by Israel posing as Dorothy Parker.

Although slow in spots, Can Your Ever Forgive Me? is an enjoyable film. McCarthy and Grant's performances are very good. In particular, McCarthy really inhabits the role. Nevertheless, I think that Glenn Close is going to win the Oscar for Best Actress...

Frame Sibling Lunch

Sharon and her two brothers, Tom and Tim, went to lunch at Piatti to celebrate their birthdays. [Frame Sibling]

Throwback Thursday - Lake Almanor - July 1997

Dinner in Chester during the 1997 trip to Lake Almanor. From 1988 to 2014, a group of the Davis mafia spent a week at Lake Almanor or Lake Shasta every summer.

Twenty-four years ago today

Sharon and I had our first date twenty-four years ago today.

Part of an e-mail that I wrote Nooter afterwards is here.

Gualala Lumber Mill

I came across this historical marker during my long run on Sunday at Sea Ranch.

Gualala Lumber Mill
1868-1906
Marker 35E-1
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
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This site is located on the Bluff Trail between the Northern edge of Sea Ranch and the Gualala Point Regional Park. The Sea Ranch Archives Committee has identified twenty-six historic sites scattered about The Sea Ranch. They have constructed trail markers with information explaining the significance of each place. They were placed as part of The Sea Ranch 50th anniversary being celebrated from Memorial Day 2014 to Memorial Day 2015. The GPS coordinates for this location are 38° 45' 27.9" N 123° 31' 35.7" W.

This mill was at the bend in the Gualala River. Large redwoods were transported from the surrounding forests to the mill by oxen teams, train and the river itself. Milled lumber was then taken by train tow miles north to Bourn's Landing and shipped by small "doghouse" schooners to San Francisco. The mill burned in 1906.

Map of Redwood Regional Park Hike

Using data from Runkeeper on my iPhone, I generated this map of our hike in the Redwood Regional Park. Sharon and I covered 6.6 miles in 2 hours and 22 minutes.

Super Bowl LIII

Flying in from the East Coast, Pat and Bernard showed up at the house in the second quarter of the Super Bowl. We had a very nice visit. Sharon made a great dinner of rubbed ribs.

The Super Bowl was very odd. Distracted on a couple of different fronts over the course of the evening, I should probably go back and rewatch the game. The New England Patriots beat Los Angeles Rams by the score of 13 to 3 in the lowest scoring Super Bowl ever. No Super Bowl had gone into the fourth quarter without a touchdown. This one did with the score tied 3 to 3. Julian Edelman was the game's MVP with 10 receptions for 141 yards.

2019 Kings versus 76ers

A very, very entertaining game!

Saturday night, Sharon, Janie, Kevin, Eric and Larkin all went to the Sacramento Kings versus Philadelphia 76ers NBA game. Before the game, Sharon, Janie and I went to dinner at Camden Spit and Larder. I had house pappardelle pasta [butternut squash, cultivated mushrooms, hen egg, parmigiano reggiano, gremola], while Sharon and Janie split an organic roast half chicken [olive oil whipped potatoes, rapini, green sauce, charred lemon]. I gave my meal a "B-".

With the Kings leading from the start, Jimmy Butler pulled the 76ers ahead by one point at 98 to 97 with 4:30 left in the game. Butler had two four point plays in the fourth quarter. The Kings closed the game on a 11 to 5 run to win by the score of 115 to 108.

The 76ers were led by Joel Embiid and Jimmy Butler. Embiid had 29 points on 11 for 18 from the field, 0 for 5 from three and 11 for 13 from the free throw line. He added 17 rebounds. Butler had 29 points on 11 for 18 from the field, 4 for 8 from three and 3 for 3 from the free throw line. Both Embiid and Butler played 39 minutes. Ben Simmons added 22 points.

J.J. Redick didn't play. Without Redick in the line-up, the 76ers went 1 for 13 from three in the first half. Reddick leads the team with 8 three point attempts per game.

I saw Bulter play for the Timberwolves in November before he was traded to the 76ers. I am still in awe of how big he is!

The Kings were led by Buddy Hield. Hield was 12 for 21 from the field, 7 for 13 from three and 3 for 4 from the free throw line.

Overall, the Kings just felt like a deeper team than the 76ers. The Kings now have 5 wins and 2 losses in games that I have seen in person during the 2018-2019 season. My goal continues to be to see at last one game a month.

A Celebration of the Life of Gene Klotz Jr.

Saturday morning, Sharon and I went to a celebration of the life of Gene Klotz at St. Anthony Catholic Church. There was a busload of Farm Credit people that Sharon and I have worked with over the years, including Randy and Marilyn Patane, Larry and Jeana Hultquist, Ernie Hodges and his wife, Dan Mattos, Dave Parker, Mary Patten, Kevin Ralph, Dan Clawson, John Braas and Ron Dolinsek. In somewhat of a surprise, we ran into my first cousin Pete. My guess is that there may have been as many as 350 people at the service.

After the mass, we went to Willow Ballroom and Event Center. The family hosted an open bar and a buffet lunch.

The Wife

With the Oscars nominations announced on Tuesday, January 22, Sharon and I are working our way through the rest of the major nominated movies that we haven't seen. Friday night, Sharon, and I watched The Wife on the AppleTV. The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Meg Wolitzer.

The Wife stars Glenn Close, Jonathan Pryce, and Christian Slater. Close won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama, Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress (tying with Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born), and Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role for her performance. She is nominated for the Academy Award for Actress.

The plot follows a wife who questions her life choices as she travels to Stockholm with her husband; he is set to receive the Nobel prize in Literature. Sharon saw several major plot twists coming before I did!

I was pleasantly surprised by the movie. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would; it exceed my expectations. I liked Close's performance more than Sharon did. She appears to be the favorite to win the Best Actress Oscar.

Gene Klotz Jr.

Sharon and I worked with Gene at Farm Credit.

It is with great sadness that the family of Gene Klotz, Jr. announces his passing on January 22, 2019 at the age of 60. Gene will be lovingly remembered by his wife, Laura and his children Michael, Kevin, and Megan. Gene was an avid outdoorsman. Gene loved to deep-sea fish, duck hunt, dive for abalone and crab. Gene enjoyed spending time at his family's ranch in the California foothills and his duck club in the Sutter Buttes. A memorial service in memory of Gene will be held on Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 10:00 am, St. Anthony's Catholic Church, 660 Florin Road, Sacramento. A reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to California Waterfowl Association or a charity of your choice.

Map of Garin/Dry Creek Pioneer Hike

Using data from Runkeeper on my iPhone, I generated this map of my hike in the Garin/Dry Creek Pioneer Regional Park on Saturday. I covered 10.7 miles in 3 hours and 53 minutes.

Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers.

Looking for a change of pace after reading the 1,000 page Lyndon Johnson biography, my book for January was Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers. I previously read her first two books: The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet [July 2017] and A Closed and Common Orbit [April 2018]. I really enjoyed both those books for their characters and world building.

Record of a Spaceborn Few, the third in Becky Chambers’ loosely linked science fiction trilogy, explores the Fleet, a massive collection of ships that is home to the Exodans. The Exodus are the distant descendants of Earth-born humans. Following a few key characters, it explores the evolution of society aboard these ships.

While this book continues the author's world building, it is a much more pedestrian slice of life story than the first two books. While I gave the first two books a "B+", I would give this book a "C". It is not a bad book, but I just didn't find the story and the characters compelling. With so many possible good books in the world to read, I don't recommend this one...

Neighborhood Homeowners Association Meeting

Sharon and I went to the neighborhood homeowners association meeting at Rod and Kathy's house. Sharon was elected to the board! I love our neighborhood.

After filing for bankruptcy twice last year, one of our neighbors has lost his house in a foreclosure. Unfortunately, he is still in the house and now has three renters. The bank now has to file an unlawful detainer to get him out. It will be interesting to see how long it will take to get this situation resolved...

Back from Oakland

Up fairly early, we grabbed a cup of coffee around the corner from the hotel. We decided to stop for a hike on the way home. We ended up going to the Redwood Regional Park in the Oakland Hills. Sharon, Jack and I hiked there once before in May of 2015. When we got there, the parking lot and the surrounding streets were packed, but we got lucky and got a spot in the small lot at the Skyway Gate Staging Area.

We ended up hiking longer than we originally intended. We hiked out on the east side of canyon and then looped back along the stream trail in the bottom of the canyon. We hiked more than six and a half miles in just under two and a half hours. I will post a map in the next couple of weeks.

We stopped for lunch at Gott's in Walnut Creek for burgers. We got there early enough that we beat the crowd that showed up for lunch.

We rolled back up to the house in Carmichael at 1:50 pm.

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Sunday Morning Hike

A post shared by Mark Heringer (@heringermr) on Jan 27, 2019 at 12:18pm PST

To Oakland

Up at 5:20 am, we were out the door about 6:50 am. We pulled up to Jack London Square in Oakland about 8:35 am. The square was closed for the A's Fanfest so I had to drop Sharon down the block from the Waterfront Hotel. Sharon spent the day in a McGeorge MCLE class.

From the there, I headed south to the Garin/Dry Creek Pioneer Regional Parks. My plan for the day was a long hike. After a couple of quick stops, I pulled into the park about 9:30 am. I hiked for almost four hours and covered eleven miles. A map of the hike is here.

I pushed myself hard. The only time I stopped for any length of time was at the top of Tolman Park to take a few pictures.

Finishing up my hike about 1:30 pm, I grabbed a bit to eat and headed back to the Waterfront Hotel. When Sharon signed up for the class, she proposed that we spend the night and have dinner in Berkeley. We got a nice corner room with a view with a 270 degree view of the area.

After getting settled into the room, we wandered over to Scott's Seafood. We did some planning for our next big trip.

We finished the day with dinner at Chez Panisse Cafe in Berkeley. Sharon had eaten there in 1987 or 1988 with Tom, Becky and Paul. We had a very nice dinner. I started with a salad [Butter lettuce, Cara Cara orange, Oro Blanco grapefruit, and avocado salad], while Sharon had soup [Cannard Farm cardoon soup with rosemary and olio di peperoncino]. For entree, I had duck [Sonoma County duck confit with winter squash purée, cauliflower, and toasted hazelnut salsa], while Sharon had rock fish [Pan-fried rockfish with leafy broccoli, fingerling potatoes, and Meyer lemon-olive relish]. We split a dessert [Coffee-caramel custard with crème Chantilly and orange currant cookies].

Bohemian Rhapsody

On Sharon's birthday, Sharon, Janie and I watched Bohemian Rhapsody on the AppleTV. The film has received a number of award nominations. It got five nominations at the 91st Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Rami Malek. The film also won Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Actor – Drama (Malek) at the 76th Golden Globe Awards.

Bohemian Rhapsody is a 2018 biographical film about the British rock band Queen. It follows singer Freddie Mercury's life from his joining the band in 1970 to their Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium in 1985. The movie stars Rami Malek as Mercury, with Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy, Joe Mazzello, Aidan Gillen, Tom Hollander, Allen Leech, and Mike Myers in supporting roles. I frankly didn't recognize Mike Myers in the film!

The film is a massive box office success. It grossed over $802 million worldwide on a production budget of about $50 million. It became the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2018 worldwide.

I was pleasantly surprised by the film. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Malek's performance is very good. After seeing the film, his Golden Globe for Best Actor - Drama makes more sense. While I don't think the film will win best picture at the Oscars, I think Malek has a chance at best actor. Like Bale's role in Vice, it is a very physically transformational role. I have now seen all eight of the films nominated for best picture.

Celebrating Holly and Sharon's Birthday

Sharon and Holly went to dinner at Canon in East Sacramento to celebrate their birthdays.