Celebrating Joe Larkin birthday! [Joey•palooza]

Saturday at noon, I headed to Greenwood for a celebration picnic for Larkin's birthday. It was a pretty large group of 65 to 70 people.

I had a chance to visit with Jeff and Anita Boone as well as Tom Harper. In addition to the Boones and Harpers, the group of Farm Credit alumni included Chris Maneely. Chris left Farm Credit in 1986 before I took over as the IT Department VP in 1987.

With a neighborhood dinner scheduled for Saturday night, I ended up taking off a little after 3:30 pm and heading back to Carmichael.

Iron Horse Tavern

Sharon and I met the Renterias and the Borjas for happy hour at the Iron Horse Tavern.

Lexus RX400h Day 3,652

I bought the Lexus ten years ago today. Over the ten years, I have averaged 22,560 miles per year. The is down from an average of 23,550 miles last year.

Although it is getting more than a little beat-up, it has been an extremely reliable vehicle. It is going to be interesting to see how much longer I drive it. I got almost 9 1/2 years and 223,000 miles on the Explorer. I am still thinking that I won't replace it until June of 2019... I am currently focused on a Volvo XC60 plug hybrid as a replacement.

Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell

My third book for June is Faceless Killers by Henning Mankell. Flying back from Burbank, I finished the book that I was reading. Looking in the Kindle app, I saw that I had downloaded this book in March. Somewhat disturbingly, I am not sure why I downloaded the book. Looking for new and different books, I am constantly talking to people about what they are reading. Someone must have recommended it to me (Tom?), but frankly I have no recollection of who...

Faceless Killers (Swedish: Mördare utan ansikte) is a 1991 crime novel by the Swedish writer Henning Mankell. It is the first in his acclaimed Wallander series. In 1992, Faceless Killers won the first ever Glass Key award; it is given to crime writers from the Nordic countries. The story focuses on Sweden's liberal attitude regarding immigration, and explores themes of racism and national identity.

It was a nice quick read between weighier projects like the Johnson biographies. I give it a solid "B" and recommend the book. I will definitely read the next book in the series!

Carnegie Hall

Out for a walk about on Saturday night in New York City, I wandered by Carnegie Hall.

Carnegie Hall
National Register of Historic Places #1966000535
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps
This church is located on 7th Avenue between 56th and 57th Streets, New York, New York. The GPS coordinates for this location are 40° 45' 56.6" N 73° 58' 48.1" W.

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

Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park.

Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built by philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1891, it is one of the most prestigious venues in the world for both classical music and popular music. Carnegie Hall has its own artistic programming, development, and marketing departments, and presents about 250 performances each season. It is also rented out to performing groups. The hall has not had a resident company since 1962, when the New York Philharmonic moved to Lincoln Center's Philharmonic Hall (renamed Avery Fisher Hall in 1973 and David Geffen Hall in 2015).

Carnegie Hall has 3,671 seats, divided among its three auditoriums. Carnegie Hall presented about 200 concerts in the 2008–2009 season, up 3 percent from the previous year. Its stages were rented for an additional 600 events in the 2008–2009 season.

Tag

On Father's Day, Sharon and I went to an early showing of Tag at the Palladio Luxe theater in Folsom.

The film is based on a real-life group of friends from Spokane, Washington, who played a month-long game of tag every February over a 28-year period. The group was profiled in The Wall Street Journal in January 2013.

The movie stars Ed Helms, Jake Johnson, Hannibal Buress, Jon Hamm, and Jeremy Renner. Renner fractured his right elbow and left wrist after falling 20 feet while performing a stunt in the movie. He filmed much of the movie in casts. The production team used CGI to remove his casts in post-production.

I enjoyed watching Helms, Hamm and Renner. Additionally, I enjoyed the fact that it is based on a true story; I saw a profile of the group on the NBC Nightly news. Nevertheless, with so many good movies and books in the world, I don't recommend going out of your way to find it.

Sharon and Janie's Wichita Weekend - Day 4

Sharon and Janie's Caribbe@n Cruise!

Sharon and Janie's 2015 Europe Vacation!

Sleeping late again, Sharon, Janie and Mary went out for breakfast. After breakfast, Sharon and Janie started to wind their way back to California. Heading to the airport about noon, they caught a 2:15 pm Southwest flight from Wichita to Phoenix. After a longest layover, they caught a 5:00 pm flight to Sacramento.

Tiber and I finished the day with dinner at Tom's house. He barbecued the steaks from the cancelled Father's Day event. The group included Kevin, Lydia, Eric, Ashley, Julie (Tom's neighbor), Tom, Tiber and I.

Sharon and Janie's Wichita Weekend - Day 3

Sharon and Janie's Caribbe@n Cruise!

Sharon and Janie's 2015 Europe Vacation!

Sleeping late, Sharon, Janie and Mary eventually went for a three plus mile walk in Mary's neighborhood. They had a very late breakfast. Sharon noted that they stayed up late and slept late the entire weekend.

Although they had originally planned to go to the Wichita Art Museum, they ended up going shopping at upscale Von Maur instead. They finished the day with a late dinner at 6S Steakhouse.

Sharon and Janie's Wichita Weekend - Day 2

Sharon and Janie's Caribbe@n Cruise!

Sharon and Janie's 2015 Europe Vacation!

Sharon, Janie and Mary toured the Frank Lloyd Wright's Allen House. Commissioned in 1916 and completed in 1918, the house is named after its first owners, newspaper publisher Henry Allen and his wife, Elsie. It was the last of the architect's famous prairie houses, which emphasized horizontal lines, earth tones and a continuous blending of interiors with exteriors.

Sharon bought a book of all Frank Lloyd Wright's buildings that are open for tours. Talking to her on the phone, she suggested that we start a quest to visit all of them.

After lunch at a wine bar, they toured the gardens at Botanica. Sharon noted that it was hot, but not as humid as she feared.

They finished the day cooking salmon at Mary's house.

Sharon and Janie's Wichita Weekend - Day 1

Sharon and Janie's Caribbe@n Cruise!

Sharon and Janie's 2015 Europe Vacation!

Sharon and Janie took off for Wichita. They are spending a long weekend with Mary Maloney.

They caught a 9:50 am Southwest flight from Sacramento to Las Vegas and then on to Wichita. They were on the ground about 4:45 pm local time. Sharon flew on Janie's companion pass.

Sharon and Janie finished the day with dinner at Mary's house. Her grandson grilled steaks.

Although there was a regional Farm Credit Bank in Wichita and I worked on a merger between the Sacramento and Wichita banks thirty years ago, I have never been to Wichita.

Herbert Hoover: The American Presidents Series: The 31st President, 1929-1933

My second book for June is Herbert Hoover: The American Presidents Series: The 31st President, 1929-1933 by William E. Leuchtenburg. This book fits into my long term project to read books about all of the presidents.

I was probably more surprised by Herbert Hoover's life story than any other President that I have read so far. His parents were Quakers in Iowa. Orphaned as a teenager, he was raised by his uncle in the Pacific Northwest. Hoover graduated from Stanford with a mining engineering degree. He worked as a mining engineer in Australia and China.

Settling in London, Hoover was tapped to lead an effort to provide humanitarian relief and feed Europe during World War I. He then served as the Commerce Secretary under both Harding and Coolidge. Hoover led the relief efforts for the devastating 1927 Mississippi River flood.

Hoover's blind spot as president was that he believed that local and state governments and private charities should lead the effort to take care of people during the great depression. He was largely against using government spending to pull the country out of the depression. Hoover was crushed by FDR in the 1932 election.

Hoover had a little renaissance when Truman and Eisenhower were president. Under both presidents, He lead the Hoover Commission that recommended changes designed to strengthen the president's ability to manage the federal government. He died at the age of 90 in 1964.

I have read a number of the American Presidents Series books. While I have enjoyed them, they often left me wanting more. I give this book a solid "B", but I need to go back and find a more comprehensive book about Hoover...

To Clearlake

I spent the day winding my way to Clearlake and back with my boss. When I was working in the Napa Valley in 2015 and 2016, I was responsible for the Clearlake site and made a number of trips there.

We had lunch with the Market IT team and then toured the large clinic and the hospital. We finished the day meeting with the CEO.

Sacramento Bee's 2018 All-Metro baseball team

Meet The Sacramento Bee’s 2018 All-Metro Baseball Teams

June 15, 2018 02:20 PM
Updated June 15, 2018 04:06 PM

How the teams were picked: The Bee's All-Metro teams were selected through coach nominations and regional media input.

Evan Gibbons of Franklin High School cheers on his team against Davis High School. The Sac State commit started the season with a 15-strikeout perfect game and also has a win over top-ranked Elk Grove. He's a team leader and a leader on campus.

2018 All-Metro Baseball

Player of the Year

Evan Gibbons, Franklin, Sr.

Coach of the Year

Kevin Dawidczik, Del Campo

FIRST TEAM

Catcher

Daniel Susac, Jesuit, So.

Infielders

Tanner Carlson, Elk Grove, Sr.

Jack Filby, McClatchy, Sr.

Kevin Fitzgerald, Laguna Creek, Sr.

Jeffrey Jamison, Del Campo, Sr.

Brennan Rozelle, Lincoln, Sr.

Outfielders

Cameron Allie, Oak Ridge, Sr.

Mason Poisson, Del Campo, Jr.

Brett Graber, Capital Christian, Sr.

Pitchers

Anthony Carrion, Winters, Sr.

Joe Durket, Oak Ridge, Sr.

Jack Hinrichsen, McClatchy, Sr.

James Pizzuti, El Dorado, Sr.

Dakota Redfern, Colfax, Sr.

Grant Stevens, Franklin, Jr.

Designated hitter

Blake Dickman, Elk Grove, Sr.

Utility

Carter Benbrook, Jesuit, Jr.

Dennis Boatman, Woodcreek, Sr.

Chase Davis, Franklin, So.

Ryan Holgate, Davis, Sr.

Ettman Noriega, Del Campo, Sr.

Xavier Carter, Capital Christian, Jr.

Jacob Tucker, Christian Brothers, Sr.

Shawn Zamora, Elk Grove, Sr.

SECOND TEAM

Catcher

Kyle McMullen, Dixon, Sr.

Infielders

Mitch Alhady, Oak Ridge, Sr.

Jordan Berry, Roseville, Jr.

Sammy Gonzales, Winters, Jr.

Zach Meddings, Franklin, Jr.

Nico Regino, Franklin, Jr.

Outfielders

Nick Bello, Dixon, Sr.

CJ Pallari, Oak Ridge, Sr.

Nick Vogt, Davis, Jr.

Pitchers

Jakob Frederick, Del Oro, Sr.

Ryan Gill, Del Campo, Sr.

Peter Hansen, Oak Ridge, Jr.

Sam Hayden, Del Campo, Jr.

Cooper Hjerpe, Woodland, Jr.

Nathan Lemos, Roseville, Sr.

Utility

Daniel Carrion, Winters, Jr.

Matt Clayton, Yuba City, Sr.

Kevin Fitzgerald, Laguna Creek, Sr.

David Joseph, Del Campo, Sr.

Logan Meyers, Yuba City, Jr.

Jake Slates, Antelope, Sr.

George Spithorst, Elk Grove, Sr.

Jake Torres, Bella Vista, So.

Designated hitter

Troy Shields, Jesuit, Sr.



HONORABLE MENTION

Wayne Abbott, Capital Christian; Leland Addison, Placer; Alex Ahern, Casa Roble; Josh Alger, Roseville; Cole Anderson, Rocklin; Nick Barnett, Delta; Ronnie Belton, Alpha Charter; Cole Bendle, Cosumnes Oaks; AJ Bernhardt, Dixon; Jordyn Berry, Roseville; Tino Bethancourt, Oak Ridge; Kordell Brown, Elk Grove; Jeremy Buck, Cordova; Mitchell Cox, El Camino; Luke Davies, Oakmont; Michael de Necochea, McClatchy; Zach Eutsey, Lincoln; Brian Freitas, Elk Grove; Brandon Gomez, Winters; Donovan Gonzalez, Valley Christian; Ben Grigsby, El Dorado; Gary Gutierrez, Alpha Charter; Jack Hanson, Woodland; Nate Hansen, Oak Ridge; Jacob Harris, Pleasant Grove; Ryan Harvey, Woodcreek; John Hibbs, Valley Christian; AJ Hillman, Vista del Lago; Michael Ingram, Christian Brothers; Nate Jakobs, Sacramento Country Day; Tyler Jarman, Casa Roble; Trevor Johnson, Granite Bay; David Jorgensen, Capital Christian; Nick Keller, Rio Americano; Jacob Lemus, Lincoln; Nikolas McClaughry, Rocklin; Matthew Meek, Bradshaw Christian; Max Mrizek, Casa Roble; Cody Moore, Ponderosa; Cody Oldwin, Del Oro; AJ O'Neil, Dixon; Evan Panson, Jesuit; John Louis Pantlick, Colfax; Jun Park, Pioneer; Anthony Piegaro, Yuba City; Blake Peterson, Granite Bay; Blake Rainey, Del Oro; Tyler Renn, Capital Christian; Zach Reyes, Oak Ridge; Trey Rice, Capital Christian; Jacob Roberts, Winters; Jacob Running, Mesa Verde; Colton Sales, Liberty Ranch; Andrew Sanchez, Laguna Creek; Kyle Sisco, Granite Bay; Tyler Smith, Woodcreek; Cameron Skattebo, Rio Linda; Gage Spencer, Colfax; Brandon Springer, McClatchy; Carson Stevens, Franklin; Aiden Taylor, Rio Americano; Brayden Tester, Oak Ridge; Jordan Trammell, Woodland Christian; Ruben Valencia, Winters; Dominic Wall, Jesuit; Zachary Watari, Woodcreek; Hogan Weaver, San Juan; Sky Wells, El Dorado; Luke Williams, Jesuit; Ty Williams, Lincoln; Sam Wolf, Del Campo; Jack Zalasky, Elk Grove; Alexander Zarfos, Del Oro.


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.

To SoCal and Back

For the second week in a row, I spent Monday winding my way to Southern California and back. After last week's early flight, today was more sane. I caught an 8:30 am Southwest flight from Sacramento to Burbank. Boarding with A47 from the rear of the plane, I got an exit row on an older 737. [Note to self], I have decided that I need to leave the house about an hour and 45 minutes before flight time if I am not checking luggage.

My boss and I spent the day at Simi Valley. He is trying to finish getting to all of the sites before the end of July. The traffic from the airport to the hospital and back was light.

At the end of the day, we caught a 4:25 pm Southwest flight back to Sacramento. Loading with an A27 boarding pass from the back of the plane, I got the same exit row seat that I did on the morning flight.

Father's Day 2018

Sharon, Tiber and I started the day with a three mile lap around Ancil Hoffman Park. The plans for the day included going to see a movie and then heading to Tom's for a barbecue.

Getting cleaned up, Sharon and I headed to the Palladio Luxe in Folsom. We saw an early showing of Tag. More on the movie later in the week.

Walking out of the movie, we got a number of text messages from Tom canceling the barbecue. I ended up spending part of the afternoon watching the US Open. Playing a torturous Shinnecock Hills course, Brooks Koepka won for the second straight year.

Over the course of the afternoon, I talked to Jack on the phone in Georgetown and Facetimed with Drew in Los Angeles. It was nice to talk to Drew and Jack. I got a text message from Morgan in the morning.

We finished the day searing some Ahi Tuna on the barbecue. We had a nice dinner of Ahi, rice and mixed vegetables. Sharon gave me some Powerbeats3 Wireless Earphones as a Father's Day present. I am looking forward to running with them.

not-to-be-named celebration

Sharon and I went to dinner at a not-to-be-named restaurant with a not-to-be-named group for a not-to-be-named lelebration. We had a very nice evening...

Master Bedroom Reveal

Sharon has spent the last few months redecorating the master bedroom. On Friday night, she threw a small party and invited a number of people over to see the end result. The group included Debi, Michele and Deborah from the neighborhood, Janie, Tara, Laura, Holly and Erin.

Under orders to get out of the house, Tiber and I had dinner on the patio at Mesa Mercado in the Milagro Center. I had chicken enchiladas [three corn tortillas stuffed with marinaded shredded chicken and topped with green tomatillo, red guajillo and mole].

Jack's Summer Work Schedule

Jack is spending the summer working for The Corp at Georgetown. This is his work schedule for the first summer school session.

For this Elk Grove baseball family, the MLB draft provided a double dose of glory

For this Elk Grove baseball family, the MLB draft provided a double dose of glory

Cal pitcher Tanner Dodson during a game against Oregon State on March 18, 2018 at Evans Diamond in Berkeley.

This wasn't just a moment to cherish for Tanner Dodson, getting selected in the second round of the Major League Baseball draft.

There was also the enthusiasm of his father, Bo Dodson, who can speak of draft expectations. And of twisting and turning on when that call might come.

On Monday night in Elk Grove, father and son anxiously sweated out the process, pacing on the backyard patio, checking their phones and the draft tracker. The wiry 6-foot-2 Dodson went 71st overall, the former Jesuit High School and Cal star going to Tampa Bay.

"I'm pumped, and it was something I wanted to do since I was little, and Dad was right there to hug me," Dodson said of receiving the call. "Growing up, I was around baseball my entire life, always around the game, since I was 8 years old, hitting in the cages with Dad. He'd even catch my bullpen in high school. He was always there when I needed it."

Dodson is a rarity in that he can hit, field and pitch, and Tampa Bay will take a look at all of that as both sides start negotiations this week and next.

Dodson said he will do anything to get in the lineup or on the mound, or both. He is a finalist for the John Olerud Award, presented to the nation's top two-way player.

Dodson was one of the best closers in college baseball this season, setting a Cal record with 11 saves. The right-hander has consistently reached 96-97 mph with his fastball, compiling a 2-1 record in 19 appearances, striking out 35 and walking just seven in 40 innings. He also played center field and had a fielding percentage of .993.

A switch hitter, Dodson batted .320 with 12 doubles and 27 RBIs and scored 40 runs. Dodson firmly landed on the draft radar last summer in the wood-bat Cape Cod League, a haven for scouts. He earned the league's batting crown with a .365 average, and he struck out 16 and walked five in 24 1/3 innings of work.

"Last summer in the Cape was huge for me," Dodson said. "All the best guys in the country played in it, and it did a lot for my confidence. I just carried it over to this season and did the best I could."

Said Cal coach Mike Neu, "Tanner showed his ability to make an impact in multiple ways as a sophomore as well as in the Cape Cod League and that continued as a junior. We felt comfortable putting him in high-leverage situations, whether that was closing a game on the mound or hitting in a big situation, because he showed he could handle whatever spot we put him in."

Dodson emerged as a star at Jesuit and was selected in the 31st round by the Mets. He quickly opted for Cal and flourished once he cracked the starting lineup in 2017.

Bo knows baseball, too, and the highs and lows of it.

As a powerfully built 6-2 first baseman, Bo was a slugging star for Christian Brothers as one of the most celebrated area athletes of the 1980s.

As a senior in 1989, Bo clubbed a home run that landed in the tennis courts at Christian Brothers, seemingly a country mile away. He was selected in the third round of the 1989 draft by Milwaukee. Bo logged 10 minor-league seasons, five in Triple A and four in Double A, but injuries finally derailed his major-league hopes.

"I was 27 years old, had a family, and I could've probably played some more, but I was done," Bo Dodson said. "Tanner knows that. We've talked about taking care of your body, not taking any of this for granted because you never know when it can end.

"He knows it's not like college now where you have school and baseball. It's a business now, 24/7 baseball, and he's ready."

Bo said he never applied pressure to his son. There was enough already with the familiarity of Bo's pedigree.

"Tanner knew that, but he was one of those kids who said he'd make a name for himself," Bo said. "He'd go, 'Yeah, Dad, you were great but I'll go out and be better.' And he has. That's his mentality. I always let him play.

"I was never pulling him into the backyard to play. If anything, I've helped prepare him mentally and what the grind is all about."

Of his son's game, Bo said, "He has fun when he plays, and he plays hard. He's even keeled. He's a great athlete with the 'It' factor to play the game, that baseball IQ. He can hit and pitch. It's been a thrill ride. I'm extremely proud."

So is the son, who expects to become Jesuit's next MLB player. J.P. Howell pitched 12 seasons in the bigs, and Rhys Hoskins is a starting outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies.

"I hope to continue the Jesuit baseball brand," Dodson said.

He also reminded that the invitation still stands for his dad. Bo won't admit – yet – that the son is a better player.

"He won't admit that to me," Dodson said with a laugh. "He tells me he'd take me deep if I pitched to him. He doesn't want me to have a big ego. I'm ready, though."

Cal's Tanner Dodson (10) sizes up a pitch against Oregon State on March 18, 2018 at Evans Diamond in Berkeley.

Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty

My book for June is Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty. Looking around for a science fiction book to read, this book jumped out. It has been nominated for a number of awards, including a preliminary nominee for the 2017 BSFA Award for Best Novel, a finalist for the 2018 Philip K. Dick Award, a finalist for the 2018 Hugo Award for Best Novel and a nominee for the 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novel.

The plot is a murder mystery. The story takes place on a starship carrying thousands of prospective colonists from Earth to a planet in the Tau Ceti star system. All the passengers are in suspended animation. A six-person crew of cloned former criminals remains awake through the generations-long journey. Given that it is a who-done-it, I am not going to say more about the story...

I give the book a strong "B", but only a lukewarm recommendation. The book's strengths include playing with some interesting ideas about cloning and the human personality and memories as a matrix of information. I also liked the way that the author developed the back stories of the characters. Its weakness is the deus ex machine ending.

To SoCal and Back

Feeling a little under the weather, I was up at 3:30 am. I caught a 6:15 am Southwest flight from Sacramento to Burbank. Boarding with A45 from the rear of the plane, I got a very nice exit row on an older 737. I actually slept a little on the short flight.

My boss and I spent the day at White Memorial. He is trying to finish getting to all of the sites. The traffic from the airport to the hospital and back was surprisingly light.

At the end of the day, we caught a 4:25 pm Southwest flight back to Sacramento. Loading with an A25 boarding pass from the back of the plane, I got the same exit row that I did on the morning flight. I just don't understand why more people aren't focused on the exit rows.

It was a long day...

Mariposa County Landmarks

California State Historical Landmarks in Mariposa County
{GPS Coordinates of Site Location}
NO. 323 MORMON BAR
NO. 331 BEAR VALLEY
NO. 332 COULTERVILLE
NO. 333 HORNITOS
NO. 518 AGUA FRIA
NO. 527 SAVAGE TRADING POST
NO. 670 MARIPOSA COUNTY COURTHOUSE
*NO. 790 Yosemite Valley - [map] - {37.748797,-119.587273}

List of California Counties

9th Annual Art Where Wild Things Are

Feeling a little under the weather, Sharon and I walked to the 9th Annual Art Where Wild Things Are at the Effie Yeaw Nature Center. Put on by the American River Natural History Association (ARNHA) and the Sacramento Fine Arts Center, it was an art show, auction and gala. This was the first time that we have gone to this event.

There was a big turn-out from our neighborhood. The group included Jim and Debi, Debi's sister and brother-in-law, Michele and her friends from Indiana, Rob and Kathy and a friend of Kathy's, Tom and Judy, John and Sara and John's brother Josh, and Cook and a date. We sat with Rod and Kathy.

It was a nice evening.

As the live auction was winding down, a large group walked back to Jim and Debi's house. I ended up playing pool for a couple of hours. Somewhat surprisingly, I held the table for three straight games. I beat Jim, then John and finally Rod. At this point, we played three games of doubles. Rod and I lost the first two games to Jim and John, but managed to win the third.

While I wandered home to feed and walk Tiber, Sharon stayed at the party. I crashed about 11 pm. Sharon got home a little after 11:30 pm.

Spending the Day in Napa

Sharon and her brother Tom spent the day winding their way to Napa and Back. They stopped at the Kuleto Estate winery to pick up a wine shipment. Sharon has been a wine club member there for years.

They had lunch at The Charter Oak. This restaurant opened in St. Helena where Tra Vigne was previously located. They split a roasted avocado for an appetizer. Sharon had a burger, while Tom has a pork sandwich.

They finished the day checking on Becky's aunt's house in Angwin.

The Patriot

Thursday night, Sharon and I had dinner at The Patriot Restaurant in Milagro Centre. Sharon had a steak frites salad [Grilled Marinated Flat Iron, Field Greens, Seasonal Vegetables, Bleu Cheese, Crispy Fries], while I had a margherita pizza [Cileliegini Mozzarella balls, tomato sauce, basil, grant pedant, and olive oil].

It is nice to see the Milagro Centre doing so well. The parking lot was packed.

Standard Township

I drove by this spot a number of times while I was working in Sonora in 2014, but never took the time to stop. I had lunch here when we were working in Sonora on Tuesday.

Standard Township
E Clampus Vitus
See this location on Yahoo Maps in Flickr
See this location on Google Maps
This marker is located at 19040 Standard Road, Standard, California. The GPS coordinates for this location are 37° 58' 09.1" N 120° 18' 48.5" W.

Starting as a Mi-Wuk village, Standard was ranchland during the gold rush era, when the murderous Jim Lyons lived here. In 1909 Xavier Fassler sold his 567-acre dairy ranch to Standard Lumber Co. By the 1920’s the town had been sold to Pickering Lumber Company and Standard was a typical “company town” all homes, stores, the hospital, etc. were owned by Pickering and the workers were paid in Pickering script. Mexican workers lived in a section labeled “Little Tiajuana”. Louisiana Pacific, Fibreboard Corp., and Sierra Pacific Industries have continued mill operations as the town declined. The last original homes were sold or razed in 1975. The community church (1915) and the main office building (1924) were renovated in 1998.

State Senate District 6 - Districtwide Result

Eric finished second in the primary for district 6 seat in the California State Senate! He will be facing Richard Pan in the general election in November.

To Sonora

I spent the day winding my way to Sonora and back with my boss. I worked in Sonora for most of 2014.

We met with the IT Site Director, had lunch with the Market IT team at The Standard Pour in the Standard Township and then toured the new pavilion. We finished the day meeting with the CEO and CFO.

Short Visit with Drew

Late Sunday night, Drew showed up to stay overnight. He was in town primarily to see James Taylor at the Golden One Arena. He and I got a chance to visit on Monday morning. I dropped him at the airport about 9:00 am so he could catch a flight back to Burbank.

2018 Washington DC Rugby Weekend - Day 3

Gribi took off about 7 am to catch a train from Union Station to Boston. Apparently, he missed the train and started a second day of misadventures!

It was after 8 am before Snipes and I started to stir. We packed up the room and headed back to Nooters.

Getting everyone up and going, we eventually headed to Founding Farmers Moco for breakfast. Sharon, Jack and I ate at different location of this restaurant when we were in Washington DC in '11. With a forty-five minute wait for a table, the five of us sat at the bar [Nooter, Wallen, Moore, Snipes and I]. I had eggs, bacon, fruit and an english muffin.

With an afternoon flight, I rolled about 11:00 am towards the airport. It poured rain the whole way. With a stop for gas, it took more than an hours and fifteen minutes.

About 1:30 pm, I boarded a 2:00 Southwest flight back to Sacramento. With an A25 boarding pass, I got a very nice aisle seat on one of the newer 737s. I read part of a book on Herbert Hoover and logged on the wireless and worked on the blog. We were on the ground in Sacramento about 4:45 pm. I have home in Carmichael a little after 5:30 pm.

It was a great trip. Nooter was a fantastic host. I really enjoyed having a chance to see everyone and help Jack get settled into a house for the summer.

2018 Washington DC Rugby Weekend - Day 2

After a long day and a late night, Jack and I slept late. I eventually got up after 8 am. Given that we had left the rental car at Nooter, I decided to walk/run back. I covered the 2 1/2 miles in about 30 minutes.

Once I got there, I visited with Nooter and Snipes for a while. Eventually, I headed back to the hotel to pick up Jack. He was still asleep! We got him packed up and headed back to the Nooters.

We joined the group for breakfast. Nooter made a great frittata for breakfast.

The plan for the day was two pronged. First, Jack and I needed to get him moved into a house in Georgetown. Second, Nooter got tickets for the group to attend the South African Springboks versus Wales Dragons Rugby Game.

Jack and I rolled about 11:30 am to head into Georgetown. Things went very smoothly. We picked up the boxes that he had stored on campus. Jack made a quick connection to pick up the key. Double parking on the street, Jack unloaded the boxes into the front room of the house. I parked a couple blocks away and then came back to help him carry the boxes down in the basement. I will post some pictures of the house and the basement in the next couple of days. From there, Jack and I headed to a nearby Safeway to stock up on some groceries. Double-parking again, he unloaded the groceries.

Rob had said that we wanted to leave for the game at 2 pm. I got back to his house about 1:50 pm. Waiting for Hunter and Yuli, we eventually loaded everyone into the rental SUV and headed to the Bethesda Metro Station. Connecting with Hunter and Yuli there, we took the Metro to the Armory/Stadium stop. We walked from there to RFK Stadium. RFK Stadium is not in very good shape.

Wales beat South Africa by the score of 22 to 20. Although the set pieces in the first half were tedious, I enjoyed the game. I sat next to Gribi. Austin also joined us at the game.

Leaving the game, we lost Gribi. At one point, Wallen, Snipes and I backtracked from the Metro stop to the stadium to try and find him. Eventually, we wound our way back on the Metro to the rental car and then Nooter's house. Thankfully, Gribi ended up showing up about an hour after we got back.

We finished the night with a very late dinner. Nooter made salmon, rice and eggplant. I kept wandering into the front room to watch the third period of game three of the Capitals versus Knights NHL Stanley Cup playoff game. The Knights pulled their goalie with about 4 minutes to play. The pace of play was wild. The Capitals won the game by the score of 2 to 1. The win gave the Capitals a 2 to 1 advantage in the best of seven series.

Just before midnight, I grabbed Snipes. He and I headed back to the hotel and crashed.

2018 Washington DC Rugby Weekend - Day 1

Up at 3 am, Jack and I rolled from the house just after 4 am. Checking Jack's bag, it was of course overweight… We caught a 5:55 am Southwest flight nonstop to Baltimore. Boarding with A22, I was able to get the two seat exit row.

I spent the loin’s share of the flight working on my weekly status report. The wifi was solid for the whole trip. Although it took a while, I was able to send my status report with 6 MG of attachments.

We landed at 1:30 pm; the flight was almost thirty minutes early. We collected Jack’s checked bag. I had never rented a car at BWI before. It was a struggle. There was a huge line for rental car bus and a long ride to the rental car building.

Although Hertz had texted me a stall number and a car, there was not a vehicle in the stall. After some minor running amok, we ended up with a Ford Explorer and were on our way to Nooter’s house. We rolled up to Nooter's house about 3:45 pm. We visited for a little bit and then took off to check into the hotel. I am spending two nights at the Bethesda Marriott Suites. It is only about 2 1/2 miles from the Nooters.

After getting checked in, we headed back to Nooters. Over the course of the next couple of hours, Gribi and then Snipes, Wallen and Moore rolled up. I don't believe that I have seen Gribi since Nooter's wedding thirty years ago.

We spent the evening catching up. It was great to see everyone. Nooter cooked a nice tri-tip dinner.

Jack and I eventually took an Uber back to the hotel just after midnight. I was surprised it was so late.

Amazingly, Hunter and Yuli showed up after Jack and I left. There were a couple of different stories: either their connection in Chicago was cancelled or they missed their flight. They ended up flying to San Diego, then to New Orleans and finally to National. In the aftermath, no one was sure how late the Hunters stayed before heading off to the hotel (3 am?).