Saturday, February 28, 2015

California Historical Landmark #450

Working out of St. Helena from January through November of 2015, I have started exploring California Historical Landmarks in Napa, Sonoma and Lake Counties, including: Site of Stone and Kelsey Home [#426], The Battle of Bloody Island [#427], Sulphur Bank Mine [#428], Lower Lake Stone Jail [#429], Stone House [#450], Old Bull Trail Road and St Helena Toll Road [#467], Chiles Grist Mill [#547], Schramsberg [#561], Charles Krug Winery [#563], Site of York's Cabin [#682], Site of Hudson Cabin [#683], Sam Brannan Store [#684], Sam Brannan Cottage [#685], Site of Kelsey House [#686], Beringer Brothers Winery [#814], Old Lake County Courthouse [#897], Petrified Forest [#915] and Litto's Hubcap Ranch [#939]. I visited all seven of the California Historical Landmarks in Lake County and finished visiting all of the Napa landmarks.

Stone House
California State Historical Landmark #450

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located on the northeast corner of Highway 29 and Hidden Valley Road, 5.3 miles north of Middletown, California in Lake County. There are 6 other California State Historical Landmarks in Lake County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 48.568 W 122° 34.361.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #450

Oldest building in Lake County, the Stone House was erected of stone in 1853-54 by Robert Sterling, whose wife was first non-Indian woman in Coyote Valley. It was rebuilt in 1894 and served as headquarters of the Guenoc land grant and the first store in the valley.

California Historical Landmark #450

Friday, February 27, 2015

2015 Kings versus Spurs


Kurt, Tomasin, Dino, Gene and I went to the Sacramento Kings versus San Antonio Spurs NBA basketball game. After keeping the game close through three quarters, the Kings were outscored 27 to 18 in the fourth quarter and lost by the score of 107 to 96.

With DeMarcus Cousins sidelined with a sprained left ankle and bruised left hip, Ben McLemore was the high scorer for the Kings with 21 points. He was 5 for 8 from the field, 1 for 2 from three point range and 10 for 12 from the free throw line. Ray McCallum had a nice game with 20 points. Rudy Gay did not; he shot 6 for 15 from the field and had eight turnovers!

The Spurs were led by Tony Parker. Parker sparked the decisive run in the fourth quarter and finished with 19 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Dino noted at some point in the game that the Spurs look old.

Hunter and Loren were also at the game. We connected with them at half-time and after the game was over. Loren knew Kawhi Leonard at San Diego State.

We finished the evening at Malabar connecting with another group that included Yuli.

It was great to see Tomasin. I always enjoy his company.

The Kings have 1 win and 4 losses in games that I have seen in the 2014-2015 NBA season.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

ESPN 30 for 30 Shorts: An Immortal Man

Grantland and ESPN Films have released the thirtieth film in their 30 for 30 documentary short series.

30 for 30 Shorts: An Immortal Man

The latest film, from Josh Koury and Myles Kane, tells the bizarre tale of the efforts to preserve Ted Williams after the great hitter’s death.


You can find An Immortal Man on the ESPN web site at http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=12302153 .

More about the film at: http://espn.go.com/30for30/film?page=animmortalman.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

California Historical Landmark #467

Working out of St. Helena from January through November of 2015, I have started exploring California Historical Landmarks in Napa, Sonoma and Lake Counties, including: Site of Stone and Kelsey Home [#426], The Battle of Bloody Island [#427], Sulphur Bank Mine [#428], Lower Lake Stone Jail [#429], Stone House [#450], Old Bull Trail Road and St Helena Toll Road [#467], Chiles Grist Mill [#547], Schramsberg [#561], Charles Krug Winery [#563], Site of York's Cabin [#682], Site of Hudson Cabin [#683], Sam Brannan Store [#684], Sam Brannan Cottage [#685], Site of Kelsey House [#686], Beringer Brothers Winery [#814], Old Lake County Courthouse [#897], Petrified Forest [#915] and Litto's Hubcap Ranch [#939]. I visited all seven of the California Historical Landmarks in Lake County and finished visiting all of the Napa landmarks.

Old Bull Trail Road
and St Helena Toll Road

California State Historical Landmark #467

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps

This landmark is located at the northwest corner of State Highway 29 and Hill Avenue, Middletown, California in Lake County. There are 6 other California State Historical Landmarks in Lake County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 44.893 W 122° 37.048.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #467

The old bull trail from Napa Valley to Middletown was built by volunteers in the 1850s. A number of its grades were 35 percent. An official road in 1861, it was abandoned in 1868. The St. Helena Toll Road, completed in 1868, ran between the same points with grades of 12 percent.

California Historical Landmark #467

Monday, February 23, 2015

You Can't Make This Up: Miracles, Memories, and the Perfect Marriage of Sports and Television

I finished reading You Can't Make This Up: Miracles, Memories, and the Perfect Marriage of Sports and Television by Al Michaels with L. Jon Wertheim. I bought the book in the San Francisco Airport on the way to Rhode Island. I heard about the book in a podcast that Bill Simmons did with Al Michaels in late January.

Michaeals said in the podcast that part of his motivation for writing the book was to get all of his stories down on paper for his grandchildren. There are page after page of astounding stories.

Michaels has rubbed elbows with a long list of celebrities and athletes, including Howard Cosell, John Madden, Pete Rose, Johnny Bench and O.J. Simpson. I loved the Pete Rose stories! He has been the play by play voice for Monday and Sunday Night Football, Wide World of Sports, the Olympics, Super Bowls and numerous World Series.

I really enjoyed the book and recommend it! It was a nice light change of pace after wading through the book on the War of 1812.

Sunday, February 22, 2015

87th Academy Awards

Sharon, Jack and I watched the 87th Academy Awards. Neil Patrick Harris was the host. Over the last two years, Sharon and I have worked in January and February to see as many of the nominated films as possible. This year we saw seven of the eight movies nominated for best picture.

Last year, I was five for five in correctly predicting best picture, best actor, best actress, supporting actor and supporting actress. This year, I had a hard time trying to predict best picture. I ended up going with Sharon and picking Boyhood. I am surprised that Boyhood didn't win either best picture or best director just on the merits of its twelve year production cycle and the vision that it took to pull it together.

I ended up picking three of five, including getting best actress, supporting actor and supporting actress right, but missing on best picture and best actor. Sharon correctly predicted Redmayne for best actor.

Saturday, February 21, 2015

Jesuit Varsity Baseball versus Bella Vista Scrimmages

The Jesuit Varsity Marauders scrimmaged the Bella Vista Broncos at Bella Vista High School. With 26 players out for varsity plus two more potential players (Flores and Romo-Vaughn) still wrestling and playing basketball, the coaches cut five players on Friday night (Beards, Chiappe, Allmen, Mathai and Estipula). They took 20 players to the scrimmage (one senior was out sick). There are a couple of players on the Broncos that Jack played with on the Walbeck team, including Lee, Gross and Clarke.

The teams played two eight inning scrimmages. In the first scrimmage, Dodson, Wolger, Cosca and Petrucci each pitched two innings for the Marauders. Although Dodson hit two batters, Dodson and Wolger looked sharp. Cosca continues to have some trouble finding the strike zone. Lee pitched three strong innings to start the game for the Broncos.

Jack played right field in the first scrimmage. He batted tenth.

At the plate, Jack was 0 for 2 with a sacrifice fly and an RBI. In his first at-bat, with Goudreau on second, Jack hit a hard ground ball up the middle. The shortstop got to the ball and threw Jack out at first. Goudreau moved to third and later scored on an error on Dodson's grounder. Jack lined a 1 and 2 pitch into right center in his second plate appearance. I thought that the ball was going to drop, but the right fielder made a nice sliding catch on the ball for an out. In his third at-bat with runners on second and third and one out, Jack hit a fly ball to left center for out. The runner scored from third for the sacrifice fly and the RBI.

Jack's swing looks good. He squared the ball up in all three at-bats.

In the field, Jack had four put-outs, including a nice catch on a sinking line drive, and handled four other hard hit balls. He did a nice job of hitting the cut-off on all the plays. Jack looks very comfortable in the outfield.

With the Marauders leading by the score of 8 to 5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Petrucci got hit very hard and gave up five runs, including one on a balk. The Marauders lost the first scrimmage by the score of 10 to 8.

After a short break, the Marauders played a second eight inning scrimmage against the Broncos. Morley, Kane, Child and Zendejas each pitched two innings. Morley looked good, while Kane had some trouble finding the strike zone.

Jack was due to hit in the top of the eighth as a pitch hitter when Jesuit made its last out.

The Marauders gave up two unearned runs on errors at first and third. They were able to scratch out two runs in return. The scrimmage ended up tied at 2 to 2.

The Marauders made more errors than I expected and didn't really hit very well.

The coaches told the boys after the scrimmage that they would be posting the roster by 9:00 am Sunday morning.

The Marauders were going to scrimmage Granite Bay, Davis and Pleasant Grove next Saturday at Jesuit.

Friday, February 20, 2015

Celebrating Tim's and Eric's Birthday

A big group, including Tom, Eric, Kevin, Tim, Kathy, Erin, Eileen and Eileen's boyfriend Will, Sharon and I, went to dinner at Red Lobster to celebrate Tim's and Eric's birthday. I had the Salmon New Orleans.

We finished the evening with a bundt cake that Tom had made. I was very surprised that they would let us bring the cake and wine (without a corkage fee) into the restaurant. I am also amazed at how busy the restaurant was.

Thursday, February 19, 2015

Foxcatcher

Continuing a quest to see all of the Oscar nominated films and traveling for work, I watched Foxcatcher as an on demand video in the hotel. The film is loosely based on the events surrounding multimillionaire E.I. du Pont family heir and wrestling enthusiast John E. du Pont's 1986 recruitment of 1984 Olympic gold medalist US wrestlers Mark and Dave Schultz. du Pont was recruiting the brothers to help coach US wrestlers for participation in National, World, and Olympic competition for a team called Foxcatcher.

The film stars Steve Carell as John du Pont, Channing Tatum as Mark Schultz, Mark Ruffalo as Steve Schultz, and Vanessa Redgrave as du Pont's mother.

The film is nominated for five Oscars, including a Best Actor nomination for Carell, Best Supporting Actor for Ruffalo and Best Director. It is the first film to be nominated for Best Director but not Best Picture since 2008.

This is a very unusual performance by Steve Carell. The physical performances of Tatum and Ruffalo as wrestlers are also somewhat captivating: their posture and way of moving. As a side note, I wrestled my freshman year in high school. Nevertheless, this film is not going to win any Oscars. Additionally, I don't recommend that anyone go out of their way to see it...

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

California Historical Landmark #262

Milton
California State Historical Landmark #262

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
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This landmark is located 15 miles northwest of Copperopolis via Rock Creek Road at the corner of County Road J14 and Plaza Street, Farmington, California in Calaveras County. There are 40 other California State Historical Landmarks in Calaveras County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 01.920 W 120° 51.170.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #262

Completion of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1871 marked the birth of the town of Milton. Named after Milton Latham, one of the railroad construction engineers, this town was the first in Calaveras County to have a railroad. Freight and passengers continued their journeys to other parts of Calaveras County by wagon and stagecoach.

There is little or nothing left of Milton. There is a Masonic Hall. The plaque in front of the building reads:

Keystone Lodge No. 161, F. & A.M. instituted in Copperopolis, Dec. 19, 1862, at the height of the copper mining boom. Moved, 1881, to Milton, the terminal of the Stockton & Copperopolis Railroad, which because of the collapse of copper mining, never reached its intended goal. Dedicated to the memory of those who sought to perpetuate the moral teachings of Freemasonry. To them we gratefully acknowledge our debt.

California Historical Landmark #262

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict

Flying to the east coast, I finished reading The War of 1812, A Forgotten Conflict by Donald Hickey. As a follow-up to reading the Thomas Jefferson biography last year, I decided to read a book about the Lewis and Clark expedition and a book about The War of 1812. This book also fits loosely into my project to read books about all of the presidents. James Madison, the fourth president, was president during the War of 1812.

Madison's call to war in May of 1812 charged the The British with a number of offenses. These included: impressing American seamen; violating American waters; establishing illegal blockages, particularly under the Council of Orders; employing a secret agent to subvert the Union; and, exerting influence over the Indians. Impressment was a particularly volatile issue dating back to the Chesapeake Affair in 1807.

Four random observations about the war… First, I didn't remember or realize the Battle of Tippecanoe was part of the build up to the War of 1812. Second, if the military hadn't mismanaged the first year of war, all of Canada would probably be part of the United States! Third, the issues of supply lines and communications are fascinating. Both sides had enormous struggles supplying advancing troops along the northern frontier. Highlighting the communication problems, the major American victory of the war--The Battle of New Orleans--was fought after the war was over. Lastly, the federal government was broke and had a horrible time raising money to finance the war.

While I appreciate getting an overview of the War of 1812, this is not my favorite book. I am going to look for some other War of 1812 books that are focused on specific aspects over the next couple of years…

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - José González - Every Age

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Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - José González - Every Age

Code Expiration: May 12, 2015

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Buy Me a Pie!

The complete list of Starbucks iTunes picks of the week is here!

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Buy Me a Pie!

Code Expiration: May 12, 2015

Monday, February 16, 2015

Jesuit Varsity Baseball Tryouts

I spent a couple of hours on Saturday and then again on Monday watching the Jesuit Varsity Baseball tryouts. Both days were essentially intersquad scrimmages.

There are 16 juniors and 12 seniors trying out for the team. There are 8 returning seniors; one of the seniors from last year is out with shoulder surgery. Four of the seniors trying out didn't make the team last year. There are 15 juniors from last year's JV team, plus one junior who was hurt last year, but played as a freshman.

Their first scrimmage will be at Bella Vista on Saturday. Last year, they announced the team on Saturday night after the first scrimmage. There were 21 players on last year's roster.

Sunday, February 15, 2015

American Sniper

Continuing our quest to see of all the Oscar nominated films, Sharon and I went to see American Sniper at the Century 14 Theaters on Arden. It is based on the book American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History by Chris Kyle, with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice. With 255 kills, 160 of which were officially confirmed by the Department of Defense, Kyle is the deadliest marksman in U.S. military history.

American Sniper received six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Actor for Cooper.

Sharon was surprised how much she liked the film. She would rank it in the top group of this year's film nominated for best picture. I am not sure how I feel about the film. Last year, I was able to correctly predict Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress. This year is going to be much harder.

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Valentine's Day 2015

After I spent much of the day watching the Jesuit Varsity baseball try-outs, Sharon and I celebrated Valentine's day with a nice dinner at plan B. Sharon had salmon, while I had rack of lamb. The food was good, but the place was packed and the service a little slow. After dinner, we exchanged gifts; I gave her a workout top.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Breaking Bad: Season 2


Sharon and I finished watching Season 2 of Breaking Bad and started season 3. We are not moving very fast through the series; we finished Season 1 in September.

The second season of Breaking Bad premiered on March 8, 2009 and concluded on May 31, 2009. It consisted of 13 episodes.

The season received five Emmy Award nominations with two wins. Bryan Cranston won his second consecutive award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.

There is lots of buzz about how Breaking Bad is one of the greatest television series of all time. While we are enjoying it, it is not very life affirming...

Back from St. Helena

After spending two days traveling to the east coast and back on Wednesday and Thursday, it took me three and a half hours to drive 94 miles from St. Helena to Carmichael in heavy traffic on Friday night. I didn't realize until later that it was the beginning of a three day weekend! oy vey.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

From Providence, Rhode Island

After nine meetings in seven and a half hours, I had a car service pick me up in front of the Rhode Island Hospital. With it snowing lightly, I had wild Russian drive a suburban like crazy through the heavy traffic back to Logan Airport in Boston.

I had been a little worried about getting back to the airport to catch my flight. I didn't need to worry. In spite of the weather and the traffic, we covered the 53 miles in a little more than an hour and ten minutes. I got to the airport more than hour before my flight started to board.

I caught an 8 pm JetBlue flight from Boston back to San Francisco. We were on the ground at SFO about 11:10 pm. I caught the shuttle to the long term parking garage. I was back in Napa about 1 am.

It was a 22 hour day. Essentially, it was a 39 hour trip to the east coast and back. My body and brain were very confused after two quick days of back and forth time changes…

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

To Providence, Rhode Island

Up early after spending the night in San Carlos, I caught a 8 am JetBlue flight from San Francisco nonstop to Boston. I spent over four hours of the five and a half hour flight working on the computer; I was dumbfounded at how good the wireless was! Although it left late, the flight landed ahead of schedule about 4:35 pm.

Walking out of Logan Airport, I caught the free Silver Line Bus to South Station. I bought a train ticket for Providence. The 6:10 pm train left on time, but ran behind schedule. With all of the snow in the last two weeks, a number of trains were cancelled. I was frankly just glad that the trains were running to Providence. The train got to Providence about 7:40 pm.

I walked a few blocks from Providence Station to the Omni Hotel. I will be spending one night in Providence…

Lake County Landmarks

California State Historical Landmarks in Lake County
{GPS Coordinates of Site Location}

*NO. 426 Site of Stone and Kelsey Home - [map] - {38.978383,-122.8434}
*NO. 427 The Battle of Bloody Island - [map] - {39.14963,-122.88812}
NO. 428 Sulphur Bank Mine - [map] - {39.020113,-122.648803}
*NO. 429 Lower Lake Stone Jail - [map] - {38.910433,-122.611367}
*NO. 450 Stone House - [map] - {38.80947,-122.57268}
*NO. 467 St. Helena Toll Road and Bull Trail - [map] - {38.74822,-122.61747}
*NO. 897 Old Lake County Courthouse - [map] - {39.0438,-122.91575}

List of California Counties

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

California Historical Landmark #429

Working out of St. Helena from January through November of 2015, I have started exploring California Historical Landmarks in Napa, Sonoma and Lake Counties, including: Site of Stone and Kelsey Home [#426], The Battle of Bloody Island [#427], Sulphur Bank Mine [#428], Lower Lake Stone Jail [#429], Stone House [#450], Old Bull Trail Road and St Helena Toll Road [#467], Chiles Grist Mill [#547], Schramsberg [#561], Charles Krug Winery [#563], Site of York's Cabin [#682], Site of Hudson Cabin [#683], Sam Brannan Store [#684], Sam Brannan Cottage [#685], Site of Kelsey House [#686], Beringer Brothers Winery [#814], Old Lake County Courthouse [#897], Petrified Forest [#915] and Litto's Hubcap Ranch [#939]. I visited all seven of the California Historical Landmarks in Lake County and finished visiting all of the Napa landmarks.

Lower Lake Stone Jail
California State Historical Landmark #429

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
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This landmark is located 0.1 mile south of the intersection of State Highways 29 and 53, 16118 Main Street, Lower Lake, California in Lake County. There are 6 other California State Historical Landmarks in Lake County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 54.626 W 122° 36.682.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #429

This jail, claimed to be the smallest in the United States, was erected in 1876 of stone locally quarried and reinforced with iron. During the stirring days of the first quicksilver operations of the Sulphur Bank Mine, lasting from 1873 to 1883, obvious need for a jail led to its construction.

California Historical Landmark #429


California Historical Landmark #429

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Noisli

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Code Expiration: May 5, 2015

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Dwelp

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Monday, February 09, 2015

Jesuit Varsity Baseball Tryouts

With pitchers and catchers reporting last Monday, Jack finally started tryouts for varsity baseball today. After playing frosh and then JV baseball the last two years, I am excited for him to finally try out for varsity. A couple of his teammates from the Gunners and Outlaws, including Niko, Josh, Trevor, Austin and Aaron have already gotten a chance to play varsity over the last two years. Joe, Jack's classmate at SEAS, has been playing varsity at CB since he was a freshman.

Based on talking to Jack, there are 28 boys going out for varsity team. This is actually fewer than I expected… Roessler, Colombara, Baer, DeAnda and Renteria from last year's JV team are not trying out this year. One player from last year's varsity team--Vierra—is also not going out.

Three of the returning seniors signed letters of intent last week, including: Loeb, Oregon State; Dodson, Cal, and; Goudreau, Azusa Pacific. Dodson was second team All Metro last season, while Loeb was an honorable mention. Last year's team missed the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

Their first scrimmage will be at Bella Vista on Saturday, February 21. Last year, they announced the team on Saturday night after the first scrimmage. There were 21 players on last year's roster.

With all of the rain over the weekend, the boys just lifted and threw on the first day of tryouts.

Sunday, February 08, 2015

2015 Kings versus Suns

Kings 85, Suns 83 with Sharon, Jack and Bridget

Sharon, Jack, Bridget and I went to the Sacramento Kings versus Phoenix Suns NBA basketball game. We sat in Section 104, Row b, Seats 1 2, 3 and 4. With the Kings holding a 10 point lead through most of the game, the Suns tied the score at 83 to 83 in the last minute. DeMarcus Cousins hit a jumper as time expired to win the game by the score of 85 to 83.

With Rudy Gay and Darren Collison out with injuries, Cousins was the leading scorer for the Kings with 28 points and 12 rebounds. He was 13 for 25 from the field and 2 for 4 from the free throw line.

With Eric Bledsoe home with his pregnant wife, Isiah Thomas was the leading scorer for the Suns with 26 points. He was 8 for 17 from the field, 3 for 9 from three point range and 7 for 9 from the free throw line.

The Suns struggled with their shot all night. They were 5 for 28 (18%) from three point range. Markieff Morris went 3 for 20 from the field.

Jack is a Suns fan. We saw both of the Suns versus Kings games last season [4/17/2014, 11/19/2013] and the game earlier this season [12/26/2014]. He was not pleased as Cousins shot bounced in.

Kurt and Craig were in section 202. Sharon and I visited with Kurt at halftime.

The Kings have 1 win and 3 losses in games that I have seen in the 2014-2015 NBA season.

2015 Jesuit Father Son Mass

Jesuit High School Father Son MassFor the third year in a row [2013, 2014], Jack and I went to the Father Son Mass at Jesuit High School.

The last two years, the Mass has been Sunday morning before the Super Bowl. Probably due to last weekend's crab feed, it was moved out a week. I hope that they will move it back to Super Bowl Sunday next year.

We sat with the Laskins. After the Mass, we wandered over to the reception before hustling off to work-out with Matt Walbeck.

Saturday, February 07, 2015

ESPN Films 30 for 30 Vol 2: Brothers in Exile

Running on the treadmill, I watched Brothers in Exile. This is the twenty-fourth installment of ESPN's 30 for 30 volume II. An episode guide for Vol II is here. I am still working to catch up on all of the episodes that were released last fall.

This 30 for 30 tells the story of half-brothers Livan and Orlando Hernandez. They were both star pitchers for the Cuban National Baseball team who defected to the United States to play major league baseball. In addition to their personal stories, the film looks at the conditions in Cuba following the collapse of the Soviet Empire.

Livan defected first in 1996. Banking on his status as the hottest young prospect in Cuba, he defected via Mexico and signed with the Florida Marlins. In his second season with the Marlins, Livan was the MVP in the NLCS and the World Series. He went on to pitch in the major leagues for 17 seasons, including four seasons with the San Francisco Giants. Livan was on the 2002 Giants team that made it to the World Series.

When Livan defected, Orlando was banned from professional baseball in Cuba for life; he was suspected of having helped Livan escape. On Christmas 1997, an increasingly frustrated and harassed Orlando left Cuba in a small boat. He was stranded on a deserted island for days before being picked up by the U.S. Coast Guard. Less than a year later, "El Duque" was helping pitch the New York Yankees to a world championship in 1998. Orlando went on to pitch in the major leagues for 9 seasons, including making it to the World Series five times with New York Yankees.

Both Livan and Orlando appear in the film to tell their stories. Not expecting very much, I was pleasantly surprised by the film; I enjoyed it a great deal.

Friday, February 06, 2015

Celebrating 20 years since our first date!

Sharon and I went to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of our first date.

Twenty years ago today [Monday, February 6, 1995], we had our first date at Mace's.

Mace's closed in 2005 and Ruth Chris opened in the same location.

An email that I wrote Nooter a few days after our first date is here.

Thursday, February 05, 2015

2015 Oscar Nominations

My predictions are shown in red.

While I got five out of five in these categories in 2014, I only picked three of five this year.

Best Picture
   American Sniper
   Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) - [ACTUAL WINNER!]
   Boyhood
   The Grand Budapest Hotel
   The Imitation Game
   Selma
   The Theory of Everything
   Whiplash

Best Actor
   Steve Carell - Foxcatcher
   Bradley Cooper - American Sniper
   Benedict Cumberbatch - The Imitation Game
   Michael Keaton - Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
   Eddie Redmayne - The Theory of Everything - [ACTUAL WINNER!]

Best Actress
   Marion Cotillard - Two Days, One Night
   Felicity Jones - The Theory of Everything
   Julianne Moore - Still Alice
   Rosamund Pike - Gone Girl
   Reese Witherspoon - Wild

Supporting Actor
   Robert Duvall - The Judge
   Ethan Hawke - Boyhood
   Edward Norton - Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
   Mark Ruffalo - Foxcatcher
   J.K. Simmons - Whiplash

Supporting Actress
   Patricia Arquette - Boyhood
   Laura Dern - Wild
   Keira Knightley - The Imitation Game
   Emma Stone - Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
   Meryl Streep - Into the Woods


The 2021 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2020 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2019 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2018 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2017 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2016 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2015 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2014 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2013 Oscar nominations are here.

The 2010 Oscar nominations are here.

The 1988 Oscar nominations are here.

The 1975 Oscar nominations are here.

Wednesday, February 04, 2015

Amazon Music: The Next in Indie Pop - Milo Greene

Tuesday, February 03, 2015

California Historical Landmark #735

Back working in Sonora in June, July, August, September, October, November and December of 2014, I started exploring the California Historial Landmarks in Calaveras County. Sites that I visited included: Valley Springs [#251], San Andreas [#252], I.O.O.F. Hall [#256], Fourth Crossing #258, Congregational Church [#261], Stone Corral [#263], Chili Gulch [#265], Jenny Lind [#266]; Mokelumne Hill [#269]; Pioneer Cemetery [#271], Douglas Flat [#272]; Carson Hill [#274], Robinson's Ferry [#276], Angels Camp [#287], Altaville [#288], Vallecito Bell Monument [#370]; Old Mining Camp of Brownsville [#465], Red Brick Grammar School [#499], Calaveras County Courthouse and Leger Hotel [#663], Angels Hotel [#734]; Prince-Garibardi Building [#735], and; Birthplace of Archie Stevenot [#769].

Prince-Garibardi Building
California State Historical Landmark #735

See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
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This landmark is located at 298 South Main Street, near the Highway 4 junction, Altaville, California in Calaveras County. There are 40 other California State Historical Landmarks in Calaveras County. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 04.750 W 120° 33.251.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

California Historical Landmark #735

This structure was erected in 1852 by B. R. Prince and G. Garibardi for a general merchandise business. Improved in 1857 with living quarters on the second floor, it is still used for living and warehouse purposes.

California Historial Landmark #735

Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Magnetized

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Starbucks iTunes Pick of the Week - Magnetized

Code Expiration: April 28, 2015

Starbucks iTunes Pick of iTunes - Day One

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Starbucks iTunes Pick of iTunes - Day One

Code Expiration: April 28, 2015

Monday, February 02, 2015

ESPN FiveThirtyEight Signals: The Queen of Code

FiveThirtyEight and ESPN Films have released the third film in their Signals digital short series.

FiveThirtyEight Signals: The Queen of Code

You probably don’t know the name Grace Hopper, but you should.

As a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy, Hopper worked on the first computer, the Harvard Mark 1. And she headed the team that created the first compiler, which led to the creation of COBOL, a programming language that by the year 2000 accounted for 70 percent of all actively used code. Passing away in 1992, she left behind an inimitable legacy as a brilliant programmer and pioneering woman in male-dominated fields.

Hopper’s story is told in “The Queen of Code,” directed by Gillian Jacobs (of “Community” fame).


You can find The Queen of Code on the ESPN web site at http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=12205119 .

Sunday, February 01, 2015

Super Bowl XLIX

While Jack drove out to Elk Grove for a Super Bowl party, Sharon, Liz and I watched the game at home. Sharon made a great dinner of pulled pork.

New England held on to win the game by the score of 28 to 24. Like most people watching the game, I was flabbergasted that Seattle choose to throw on second down rather than hand the ball to Lynch for three straight plays...