Donum Estate

Just after 9 am on Sunday morning, Sharon and I and our neighbors Rod and Kathy headed to Donum Estate for a member event. Sharon has been a wine club member there since January of 2017. Although the winery sent an email warning about the NASCAR event traffic at Sears Point, we got there in about an hour and 35 minutes. We were early and I was able to park at one of their two car chargers!

After wine tasting for a bit, we had a very good paella lunch. They also had something I have never seen before: people walking around shucking oysters.

After lunch we got a chance to visit the spider house. From there, we walked the art on the property. I walked up to the heart on the hill.

We rolled from the winery about 2:35 pm. The traffic was heavy on the way home, but not terrible. It took us two hours to wind our way home. It was a very nice day...

Sharon and Marlene at Ancil Hoffman

Saturday morning, Sharon and Marlene played eighteen holes of golf at Ancil Hoffman. Marlene shot a 102, while Sharon carded a 120.

Sharon and Janie to Napa

Thursday night, Sharon and Janie headed to Napa. After checking into the Napa Valley Marriott, they had dinner at Angele. They spilt Escargots [Garlic, Parsley, Beurre Blanc, Levain Croutons] and “Steak Frites” Prime New York Steak [French Fries, Bordelaise Sauce].

On Friday morning, they had intended to paddle board, but ended up kayaking on the Napa River instead. After getting cleaned up at the hotel, they had lunch at the Squeeze Inn.

After lunch, they stopped at the Hess Winery. Sharon said that the winery has an interesting collection of Modern Art. We need to take Jack there!

They spent about an hour shopping at the Cabi Factory Outlet. Heading home via Lake Berryessa, Winters and Woodland, they got a taste of the traffic that I spent almost two years fighting...

Baby Huffling is a boy!

Nick Sogard

Nick Sogard was drafted in the 12th round by the Tampa Bay Rays. He has signed and is already playing minor league baseball with the Hudson Valley Renegades. Jack played with him at Jesuit.

12 (368): @RaysBaseball select Loyola Marymount University (CA) SS Nick Sogard. https://t.co/ddCNyr2CGL #MLBDraft

— MLB Draft Tracker (@MLBDraftTracker) June 5, 2019

40 years ago today

Literally fresh out of college, I started my first job with the California Farm Bureau Federation 40 years ago today.

Sharon, Shannon and Evelyn

Father's Day 2019

With Sharon, Drew and Shannon up until 2:30 am, they all slept late. I took Tiber for a long walk around the field while everyone was still sleeping.

Eventually getting everyone up and moving, the four of us headed to Hawks Provisions and Public House for brunch. Sharon had been there for lunch couple of times, but I had never eaten there. I had a DENVER OMELET [BELL PEPPERS, ONIONS, SMOKED HAM AND CHEDDAR CHEESE, CRISPY POTATOES], Sharon and Drew had SOFT POLENTA [PORK AND ROSEMARY RAGU, POACHED EGGS, SHAVED PARMESAN], and Shannon had EGGS BENEDICT [SALMON GRAVLAX, ENGLISH MUFFIN, DILL HOLLANDAISE AND FARM GREENS].

It was a very lazy afternoon. Everyone took a nap. I finished the day running on the treadmill watching the end of the US Open Golf Tournament. It was played at Pebble Beach this year. Sharon, Jack and I had a chance to walk the Pebble Beach course during the AT&T Pro-am in early 2000's, including 2005 and 2006.

Gary Woodland held off Brooks Kopek to win this year's U.S. Open. Kopek was trying to win his third straight U.S. Open.

Jack called and the four of us had a chance to talk to him. Shannon took off for her parent's house in Half Moon Bay in the late afternoon. Drew, Sharon and I finished the day having a nice dinner on the deck. Sharon made her spatchcock chicken recipe.

I really enjoyed having a chance to spend some time with Drew and Shannon for Father's Day!

Drew & Shannon's Engagement Party

Early in the year, Sharon and I started talking to Drew and Shannon about hosting an engagement party and proposed the Saturday before Father's Day. The original idea was that the party was going to focus on people who probably wouldn't be invited to the wedding, but the guest list strayed a little from there. We have spent the last six weeks getting the house in shape and organized for party.

We spent the morning and early afternoon putting the finishing touches in place for the party. We cleaned the front and the back deck, moved the barbecue, arrange the rental furniture and hung a number of lanterns.

The Snipes arrived first at exactly 5:30 pm! From there, it was a steady stream of guests. The original count was about 53, but as Sharon correctly predicted a number of people were no shows. I believe that we ended up with close to 45 people. It was an eclectic group that included our friends (Snipes, Larkins, Renterias, DiGiorgios, Wackman, Janie, Liz), Sharon's family (Tom, Tim and Kevin), Shannon's maid of honor, some neighbors and a slew of people that Drew grew up with in Placerville.

Sharon had arranged for caterer (Elle's Custom Catering) who put out a tremendous spread of food. We met the caterer at dinner with some friends in February. The caterer supplied a bartender!

It was a very nice evening. I frankly lost track of time at the end of the evening. At one point, Tiber and I walked the Larkins to their car; I am not sure what time that was... A group hung out on the deck until almost 11:30 pm. Sharon, Drew, Shannon and I moved inside and talked until 12:30 am when I crashed. I think that Sharon, Drew and Shannon stayed up until 2:30 am!?!

Drew & Shannon

Kicking off the weekend, Drew and Shannon rolled up about 9:30 pm. They drove up from Southern California.

Sharon and I are throwing them an engagement party on Saturday. I am looking forward to them being here for Father's Day brunch on Sunday.

Neighborhood Book Club

Sharon is part of a neighbor book club that meets about every two months. Thursday night, they met at Judy's house to discuss We Must Be Brave by Frances Liardet.

Sharon could never get into the book. She didn't finish it.

Somewhat surprisingly, their next book is Foundation by Isaac Asimov. Tanya selected it. I probably read that book in the early 1980's. I am going to read it again this summer...

Shannon and Andrew Yard Signs

Sharon had a couple of yard signs made for this weekend's engagement party.

Alex Isola

Alex Isola was drafted in the 29th round by the Minnesota Twins. Jack played with him at Jesuit and with Walbeck.

Isola played on the TCU team in this year's College World Series regionals [May 31, June 1 and June 2]. Although he has a year of college eligibility left, the rumor from Rod and Coop is that Isola is going to sign with the Twins...

29 (869): @Twins select TCU (TX) C Alex Isola. https://t.co/s1EjhhB2OT #MLBDraft

— MLB Draft Tracker (@MLBDraftTracker) June 5, 2019

To St. Helena and back

With the completion of the new building and the data center move, I am starting to travel to the markets again. My boss, Brian and I spent the loin's share of the day traveling to St. Helena and back. I spent most of 2015 and 2016 working out of the Napa Valley and based at the St. Helena hospital.

We had lunch with the team, met with the business leaders and attended the local IT steering committee. We last visited St. Helena in August of 2018.

Even after 6:00 pm on a random Monday night, eastbound traffic from Davis to the causeway was horrible on the way back. It is hard for me to understand where all these people are coming form and where they are going...

Sacramento Bee's 2019 All-Metro baseball team

Brothers Greg, left, and T.J. Nichols of the Oakmont High School baseball team are the Bee's Players of the Year for 2019. The brothers helped their Roseville school win its first section title in 19 years

PLAYERS OF THE YEAR

Greg and T.J. Nichols, Oakmont


COACH OF THE YEAR

Aaron Agnew, Folsom


FIRST-TEAM PLAYERS

Catcher

Daniel Susac, Jesuit, Jr.

Infielders

Xavier Carter, Capital Christian, Sr.

Luke Davies, Oakmont, Sr.

Garrett Forrester, Bella Vista, Jr.

Zach Meddings, Franklin, Sr.

Nico Regino, Franklin, Sr.

Outfielders

Andrew Paolini, Oakmont, Jr.

Mason Poisson, Del Campo, Sr.

Nick Vogt, Davis, Sr.

Pitchers

Cooper Hjerpe, Woodland, Sr.

Jason Holm, Colfax, Jr.

Cade Pilchard, Jesuit, Sr.

Braden Proud, Del Campo, Sr.

Grant Stevens, Franklin, Sr.

Anthony Susac, Jesuit, So.

Designated Hitter

Chase Davis, Franklin, Jr.

Utility

Carter Benbrook, Jesuit, Sr.

Carson Blatnick, Oakmont, Jr.

Daniel Carrion, Winters, Sr.

Theo Dopkins, McClatchy, Sr.

Ryan Harvey, Woodcreek, Sr.

Sam Hayden, Del Campo, Sr.

CJ Hutton, Folsom, Jr.

Carson Stevens, Franklin, Sr.

Zachary Watari, Woodcreek, Sr.

Hogan Weaver, San Juan, Sr.

Alex Weir, Colfax, Sr.



SECOND TEAM PLAYERS

Catcher

Joey Adge, Del Campo, So.

Infielders

Drake Digiorno, Folsom, Jr.

Jonah Henrickson, Davis, Sr.

Ethan Remmers, Rocklin, Sr.

Bryce Sidler, Oakmont, Sr.

Mattie Thomas, Granite Bay, Sr.

Outfielders

Sam Daly, Jesuit, Sr.

Mateo Lake, Rio Americano, Jr.

Mitchell Parker, Jesuit, Jr.

Pitchers

Carson Kohls, El Camino, Jr.

Jacob Lynch, Folsom, Sr.

Andy Owen, Jesuit, Jr.

Kai Peterson, Oakmont, Jr.

Devon Suske, Ponderosa, Sr.

Designated Hitter

Ruben Valencia, Winters, Jr.

Utility

Drew Aguiar, Bella Vista, Sr.

Nathan Hansen, Oak Ridge, Jr.

Dylan Garrett, Laguna Creek, Sr.

Jason Harris, Colfax, Jr.

Logan Meyers, Yuba City, Sr.

Malcolm Moore, McClatchy, Fr.

John Louis Pantlick, Colfax, Jr.

Ryan Stafford, Folsom, So.

Isaiah Terrazas, Casa Roble, Sr.

Ty Uber, Ponderosa, So.

Adam Walker, Woodland, Jr.


HONORABLE MENTION

Zach Adamson, Oak Ridge; Tyler Agnew, Folsom; Anson Aroz, Placer; Will Asby, Jesuit; Vinny Bachelier, Capital Christian; Alex Baeza, Laguna Creek; Jono Barton, Western Sierra; Cole Bendle, Cosumnes Oaks; Tino Bethancourt, Oak Ridge; Rio Britton, Capital Christian; Cameron Carr, Woodcreek; Luke Carrell, Davis; Garen Caulfield, Granite Bay; Zach Chamizo, Lincoln; Clayton Coats, Lincoln; Jack Colville, Elk Grove; James Courshon, Valley Christian; Will Crookham, Oak Ridge; Owen Cuffe, Del Oro; Will Curtis, Oak Ridge; Chandler Dakin, Placer; Adam Dapkewicz, Davis; Carter Delaney, Oak Ridge; Chance Diemer, Yuba City; JR Freethy, Granite Bay; Anthony Galindo, Dixon; Xavier Garcia, Pioneer; Carson Gross, Folsom; Jason Hanson, Woodcreek; Joshua Hardamon, Alpha Charter; Dylan Hartman, Pleasant Grove; Hunter Hayes, Casa Roble; Gabe Henderson, McClatchy; Jesse Hernandez, Grant; John Hibbs, Valley Christian; Tyler Jarman, Casa Roble; Justin Johnson, Christian Brothers; Hudson Kaylor, Del Campo; Anthony Keole, Florin; Andrew Ketchum, Rocklin; Mike Lavigne, Colfax; Chad Leonard, Whitney; Dez Lossenberg, Vista del Lago; Spencer Lozano, Christian Brothers; Colby Lunsford, Bear River; Louis Manning, Liberty Ranch; Aiden Martinez, Woodcreek; Tyler McCuiston, Rocklin; Joshua Miller, Casa Roble; Logan Meyers, Yuba City; Mason Mooney, Rocklin; Kenny Morgan, Liberty Ranch; Lakeel Morris, Folsom; Parker Neutzling, Folsom; Jack Nilsson, Lincoln; Nick Noll, Nevada Union; AJ O’Neal, Dixon; Marco Pirruccello, Rocklin; Gabriel Ramirez, Capital Christian; Brandon Renstrom, Roseville; Bryce Rodgers, Yuba City; Stephen Sedleniek, Christian Brothers; Brandon Shaldone, Rio Americano; Ben Silva, McClatchy; Zach Taylor, Granite Bay; Hunter Timothy, Pioneer; Brayden Tester, Oak Ridge; Adrian Torres, Natomas; Jake Torres, Bella Vista; Nathan Van Patten, Bear River; Zach Voelker, Granite Bay; Jake Vujovich, Granite Bay; Chris Wagner, Whitney; Griffin Williams, Ponderosa; Kenny Williams, Elk Grove; Nolan Wilson, Granite Bay; Ben Weir, Laguna Creek; Cole Winters, Bear River; Brennan White, Yuba City; Sam Whiting, Pleasant Grove.

The 2014 All-Metro baseball team is here.

The 2015 All-Metro baseball team is here.

The 2016 All-Metro baseball team is here.

The 2017 All-Metro baseball team is here.

The 2018 All-Metro baseball team is here.

Death March plus Mesa Mercado

Sharon and I have been on a death march over the last couple of weekends getting the house ready for Drew and Shannon's engagement party. Saturday included: trips to the dump and Green Acres; having the windows washed and the front and back of the house power washed; re-barking and replanting in the front yard, and; re-potting several trees on the back deck.

We finished the day with dinner at the bar at Mesa Mercado. We both had chicken enchiladas.

2002 BMW 525i

With my Volvo at the dealer for a couple of recalls and a problem with the separate charging cable, I drove Jack's BMW over the last two days. Sharon originally got the 2002 BMW 525i used in 2005. Looking for a very specific model and color, she flew to Southern California, bought it and drove it home. When Jack started driving his junior year at Jesuit in 2014, she passed the car down to him and started leasing newer BMWs.

Although Jack's BMW has more than 230,000 miles on it, it is a fun car to drive. It is a real car. Unlike my Volvo or the newer BMWs, you feel like your driving, not riding in a cushioned bubble. If only it had a place for my coffee cup and a way to connect my iPhone to listen to podcasts, I would probably drive it occasionally 😀.

Champions League Final - Tottenham vs Liverpool

Saturday afternoon, June 1, Sharon, Jack and I watched the Tottenham play Liverpool in the Champions League Final. Jack is a rabid Tottenham fan.

Liverpool won the game by the score of 2 to 0. The game started with a questionable handball call in the box called on Tottenham in the first 22 seconds. Liverpool converted the penalty kick. This early penalty goal changed the feel of game.

Although Tottenham dominated possession, they never scored. Livermore added a second goal at the 87' mark.

How am I going to explain to my kids that this was given as a penalty for handball in a CL final with VAR on!! #CLFinal #TOTLIV #Tottenham #ChampionsLeague pic.twitter.com/1NvrKlL562

— Kushal (@kushalbhastana) June 1, 2019

Raising Senior [Jack back to school]

Finishing up ten days at home, Jack headed back to Georgetown last Saturday night (June 1). Like last year, he will be working for The Corp over the summer.

Jack caught a 11 pm United flight nonstop from Sacramento to Dulles. On the ground about 6:30 am on Sunday morning, he took an Uber into Georgetown. I was shocked that it only took 27 minutes [7:19 am to 7:47 am].

Jack will be living in an apartment two blocks from campus for the next year. It is hard for me to believe that he will be starting his senior year in August.

D3 College World Series

Belatedly, I realized that one other player that Jack played baseball with was in the D3 College World Series. Frankly, I didn't even know that there was a D2 and a D3 College World Series.

Aaron Wong and Chapman University are playing in the D3 College World Series. Aaron played baseball with Jack for a little bit on the Gunners and the Outlaws. I have known Aaron's dad Randy for more than 30 years; he was my IBM Account Rep when I worked for Farm Credit. In one of those small world stories, Aaron's mom Jayne was my IBM Account Rep at Sutter Health and now at Adventist Health.

Batting ninth against Washington & Jefferson on May 31, Aaron was 2 for 4 with an RBI and two strike-outs.

Chapman beat Washington & Jefferson by the score of 6 to 3.

Batting ninth against Mass.-Boston on June 1, Aaron was 1 for 4.

Chapman lost to Mass.-Boston by the score of 10 to 6.

Batting ninth against Washington & Jefferson on June 2, Aaron was 1 for 2 with a RBI, two walks and three runs scored.

Chapman beat Washington & Jefferson by the score of 8 to 4.

Batting ninth against Mass.-Boston on June 2, Aaron was 3 for 5 with two RBIs.

Chapman beat Mass.-Boston by the score of 8 to 4 in 10 innings.

Batting ninth against Mass.-Boston on June 3, Aaron was 1 for 4 with a run scored and two RBIs.

Chapman beat Mass.-Boston by the score of 8 to 4.

On June 4, Chapman played Birmingham-So. for the D3 National Championship.

In the first game, batting ninth, Aaron was 0 for 4.

Chapman beat Birmingham-So. by the score of 6 to 4.

In the second game, batting ninth, Aaron was 1 for 3 with a double, a run scored, a RBI and a strike-out.

Chapman beat Birmingham-So. by the score of 11 to 0.

Chapman won the D3 National Championship!

College World Series Regionals - June 3, 2019

I am following several different players in this year's College World Series that Jack played baseball with or against.

Jack played with Nick Sogard at Jesuit. Playing shortstop and leading off for Loyola Marymount against UCLA, Sogard was 1 for 4 with a walk, a strike-out and a run scored.

LMU lost to the UCLA by the score of 6 to 3. LMU was eliminated from the tournament. UCLA is the #1 overall seed.

College World Series Regionals - May 31, 2019
College World Series Regionals - June 1, 2019
College World Series Regionals - June 2, 2019
College World Series Regionals - June 3, 2019