Tuesday, December 31, 2019

New Year's Eve 2019

Like last year, Sharon's brother Tom came over. After some hors d'oeuvres, we started watching The Irishman. The Irishman is on a number of lists as an Oscar Best Picture favorite. Jack took off to meet up with his friends before we started the movie.

We took a break and had a late dinner. Sharon made a nice dinner of individual beef wellingtons, roasted potatoes and green beans.

After a couple of different intermissions, we eventually finished watching the movie after 11:30 pm. At 3 1/2 hours, it is a load. My notes on The Irishman are here.

The three of us finished the night on the master bedroom balcony. There were almost dozen different fireworks displays visible across the valley. It is always fun to listen to the turkeys respond to the noise. A great horned owl was also very talkative!

Monday, December 30, 2019

Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis

My second book for December was Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis. While Sharon and I saw the movie years ago, I have never gotten around to reading the book. Moneyball is included on Bill Simmon's list of the best sports books.

Published in 2003, the book follows the Oakland Athletics baseball team through the 2002 season. It chronicles their general manager Billy Beane's attempts to assemble a competitive team despite Oakland's small budget. Beans was really the first baseball general manager to use an analytical, evidence-based, saber metric approach to assembling a team.

Moneyball also provides a look at Billy Beane's high school and minor and major league baseball careers. Passing up a chance to play football and baseball at Stanford, Beane signed with the Mets straight out of high school. Viewed as a can't miss five tool prospect, he never lived up to his potential.

This is a very readable book. I recommend it.

Sunday, December 29, 2019

Some Observations about Universal Studios Hollywood

I have a few observations about our day at Universal Studios Hollywood.

The good. I really enjoyed the Studio Tour; it exceeded my expectations.

I was impressed with The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Trying to cover as many rides as possible, we rushed through this area. It would have been nice to soak it in a little more.

I did enjoy the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the Simpson ride.

Drew got two express passes from an old neighbor working as a New York cop character. These passes were a game changer. Although very expensive, if I went back with a smaller group, I would be really tempted to pay extra for the one time express pass for each ride, attraction and seated show.

The bad. I was surprised how many people were there; the place was packed. With a fairly limited number of rides, the wait times on the popular times stretched to 2 1/2 hours. Frankly, I would have been very unhappy if I had waited 2 1/2 hours for the very short Mummy ride!

Sharon felt like the rides were somewhat repetitious; the same ride just with a different setting.

I was frankly surprised how few rides there were. There are only seven major "rides." Universal Studios doesn't have the breadth and depth of the combination of Disneyland and California Adventure.

I don't have a strong desire to go back to Universal Studios. In contrast, Sharon, Jack and I went to Disneyland in August and would love to go back again!

Saturday, December 28, 2019

2019 SoCal - Day 3

Drew and ShannonWith Sharon feeling under the weather, we were moving pretty slow. I walked down and got coffee from Starbucks. Much to Sharon's chagrin, I forgot a room key...

We packed up the room and checked out. Drew picked us up at the hotel a little after 9:30 am.

With Jack out for breakfast with a friend from Georgetown, Shannon, Drew, Sharon and I walked to the Beachwood Cafe. We had a leisurely breakfast [garden omelet]. Jack wandered back towards the end of breakfast.

Afterwards, we walked back to Drew and Shannon's house. Heading out, we drove up to the Griffin Observatory. Although the traffic was crazy and the parking was slammed, we ended up getting a parking spot at the top. We walked around the outside of the observatory. Although it wasn't as clear as Thursday night, there are some amazing views.

From there, we headed to the Burbank airport. Sharon, Jack and I breezed through baggage check and security. I had an A-1 boarding pass and upgraded Jack to A-6. The flight was delayed about 35 minutes. Scheduled for 3:40 pm, we took off at 4:15 pm. Boarding from the back, I was able to get the nice exit row on an older 737-700. We were on the ground in the Sacramento about 5:30 pm. We were home about 6:45 pm.

I really enjoyed having a chance to spend some time with Drew and Shannon!

Friday, December 27, 2019

2019 SoCal - Day 2

Sleeping fairly late, Sharon and I wandered down the street from the hotel and grabbed some oatmeal for breakfast. Drew, Jack and Shannon picked up us at the hotel after 9:30 am and we headed to Universal Studios.

When we saw Drew and Shannon in October, I started proposing the idea of Sharon, Jack and I coming down to Southern California after Christmas and spending a day at Universal Studios. While Sharon, Jack and I had dinner in the City Walk years ago, I had never been to the park.

We were in the park and moving a little before 10:30 am. The day included:

Drew ran into an old neighbor playing a New York City cop character. He gave Drew two passes that were a game changer in terms of how much ground we could cover.

The day was pretty cold for Southern California. By 9 pm, we were done (the park closes at 10 pm). We walked back to the car. Drew dropped Sharon and I at the hotel.

My observations about our day at Universal Studios Hollywood are here.

Thursday, December 26, 2019

2019 SoCal - Day 1

Our original plan was to drive to Southern California to spend a couple of days with Drew and Shannon. Leaving an early morning medical appointment, we checked Waze and quickly realized that I-5 was closed over the Grapevine due to snow! Waze was routing us down 99 to Fresno, across 46 to Paso Robles and then down 101 to Southern California. It would have been a nine hour plus trip.

Sharon quickly started pushing the idea of flying. Turning around and heading home, we booked tickets on a 2:00 pm Southwest flight from Sacramento to Burbank.

We took off for the airport about 11:30 am. Like the trip to Philly, I parked at a electric vehicle charger on the sixth floor of the parking garage. I was surprised that the airport was not more crowded.

Boarding with A4, A5 and A6, we got the nice exit row on an older 737-700. It was a bumpy flight; they never served drinks.

Drew picked us up at the airport. We headed to his house. I had been to Mirror Wall Studios once before more than three years ago. This was the first time I had been there in the daytime.

We ended up walking up to the top of the hill behind their house. There was an amazing view of downtown Los Angeles. With a storm just moving out, it was very clear.


We visited and exchanged Christmas presents. They gave me several presidential biographies. I gave Drew a music toy.

Afterwards, Drew dropped us at hotel. We are spending two nights at the W Hollywood Hotel on points.

Drew, Shannon and Jack swung back later and picked us up. The five of us headed to dinner at Santuari. We split several starters, including BLACK SEA BASS CEVICHE [charred poblano crème, fresno peppers, lime, cilantro, sumac, crispy garlic], LINGUINE SEAFOOD BOLOGNESE [octopus, scallops, shrimp, annatto spice, parmesan, basil] and ROASTED BEET SALAD [blood orange, marinated feta, pistachio vinaigrette].

Jack and I both had SEARED SCALLOPS [charred onion purée, fennel salad, pickled fresno peppers, mustard seeds, chervil] as our entree. Drew had BRAISED SHORTRIK [ras el hanout, carrot purée, dried apricot, snap peas, almonds, parsley, chili thread]. Sharon and Shannon split 28OZ DRY AGED BONE IN RIBEYE [roasted garlic butter crust, grilled onion]. The food was very good.

Drew dropped us back at the hotel. Rather than staying with us at the hotel, Jack is spending the night at Mirror Wall Studios...

Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Christmas Day 2019

With everyone moving a little slow, we had a late start to the morning. Sharon and I did a creek walk with Tiber. Afterwards, we exchanged presents. Sharon gave me a weather station. For years, I had one in the backyard at Marina Point. I looking forward to getting this one on line, hooked to Alexa and connected to an app on our iPhones.

The plan for the day was a movie and dinner with Sharon's brother Tom. This is the eleventh year in a row that we have seen a movie on Christmas Day! We saw the Rise of Skywalker at the Century 14 and XD.

After the movie, we headed for an early dinner at Buca di Beppo. We split a green salad, margherita pizza, eggplant parmigiana, spaghetti with meatballs.

We finished the night with exchanging presents and having coffee and dessert at Tom's house.

Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Christmas Eve 2019

We left the house about 2:45 pm and headed towards Elk Grove for Christmas Eve Mass at Good Shepherd. We got there about 3:30 pm. We were lucky to get a couple of seats in the last row. This is the first time that we have been back to Good Shepherd since 2014. Unlike five years ago, we didn't see very many families that we knew from our long history with the school and the church. Leaving Mass after communion, I was shocked at the number of people standing in the vestibule.

From there, we headed to Sharon's brother Tim's house. We have hosted Christmas Eve five of the last seven years. While it is nice to take a break from hosting, both Sharon and I lamented not being able to share the house and our Christmas decorations. I think that I am going to push the idea of a Christmas Open House next year. We really haven't done a large holiday open house since 2002.

The group for Christmas eve totaled nineteen, including Tom, Eric and Ashley, Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia, Terry and Steve, Tim and Kathy, Eileen and Will, Erin and Cromac, Jim, Sharon, Jack and I. Tim barbecued a tri-tip for dinner.

After dinner, we exchanged gifts. The Tims gave a number of Irish themed gifts in commemoration of their trip to Ireland. Eric and Ashley made individualized pillows for everyone!

Monday, December 23, 2019

2019 Kings versus Rockets

Monday night, Sharon, Jack and I went to the Sacramento Kings versus Houston Rockets NBA game. We had drinks and some heavy hors d'oeuvres at Tiger on K Street before the game.

Trailing by as many as 25 points in the second half, the Kings pulled within five points late in the fourth quarter. They ended up losing to the Rockets by the score of 113 to 104.

James Harden was the high scorer for the Rockets. He had 34 points on 10 for 19 from the field, 4 for 11 from three and 10 for 12 from the free throw line. Russel Westbrook added 28 points, including going 3 for 4 from three point range.

De'Aaron Fox was the high scorer for the Kings. He had 31 points on 13 for 31 from the field, 1 for 4 from three and 4 for 9 from the free throw line. In the fourth quarter, Fox missed five free throws that could have made it a much different game.

I was not impressed with the Kings' offense. They didn't seem to be on the same page. Given how much time Fox and Bagley have missed this year, this probably shouldn't be unexpected. Buddy Hield is in a huge slump; he was 3 for 12 from the field and 1 for 8 from three. Hield essentially didn't play in the fourth quarter.

I was also very disappointed in the refereeing. It seemed like Harden and Westbrook were getting all of the calls, while the Kings weren't getting any...

The Kings have one win and two losses in games that I have seen in the 2019-2020 NBA season. It is going to be hard for them to reach the over on season wins (+38).

Saturday, December 21, 2019

Christmas Cookies

Like 2107 and 2018, Sharon, Tom, Ashley, Erin and Eileen spent the afternoon making Christmas Cookies at our house.

Friday, December 20, 2019

Jack's Holiday Dinner


Jack hosted several of his friends for a holiday dinner. The group included Jason, Emma and Charlotte. Sharon helped them make a dinner of chicken thighs, macaroni and cheese and asparagus. It was 3:30 am on Saturday morning before the group finally broke up!

Eric and Ashley's Christmas Open House


Sharon and Jack went to a Christmas Open House at Eric and Ashley's house. Still dragging from a medical procedure in the middle of the week, I didn't make it. Sharon said that Ashley did a great job decorating the house for Christmas and the party.

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Jack is back!

Jack caught a Uber in Georgetown at 11:48 am. It took an hour and four minutes to get to Dulles.

He took a nonstop United flight from Dulles to Sacramento. The flight left at 6:25 pm and was on the ground in Sacramento at 8:47 pm.

Sharon and I went to pick him up. For the first time, we took Tiber with us!

Looking forward over the next six months, this may be the last time we pick Jack up flying home from college. He will be studying aboard during his spring break and we will be leaving on a trip right after his graduation.

Wednesday, December 18, 2019

mailing the Christmas Cards

Twenty-one of the last twenty-two years, Sharon and I have sent out a Christmas Card. Dissatisfied with the quality of the photos on commercial cards like Shutterfly in the late 2000s, I built my own format and process. Unfortunately, this is a lot more work... Additionally, the number of cards that we send out has exploded to over 100 in the last ten years with the inclusion of people from SEAS, Outlaws, Jesuit High, Sutter Health and Adventist Health.

Every year, I promise myself that I will get it done earlier, but it always slips into a last minute rush.

In 2017, I mailed about 70 cards on Sunday afternoon, December 17 and another 30 plus cards on Monday morning, December 18.

In 2018, I dropped 104 cards at the post office on Monday, December 17.

This year, I dropped 73 Christmas Cards at the post office on Tuesday night, December 17 and 33 more on Wednesday morning, December 18.

For the first time since 2007, I did a horizontal card this year.

Monday, December 16, 2019

The Impeachers by Brenda Wineapple

My first book for December was The Impeachers: The Trial of Andrew Johnson and the Dream of a Just Nation by Brenda Pineapple. This book fits into my long term project to read books about all of the presidents.

Focusing on the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson, the book looks broadly at the four years from the Lincoln assassination to the election of Grant. It provides an overview of why Congress was trying to impeach him.

Reading this book was poignant from two perspectives. First, it walks through the mechanics of the first Presidential impeachment. This provides a solid framework for following the current Trump impeachment process. Second, while I was reading the book, we toured the National Museum of African American History and Culture. The book highlights how poorly Blacks were treated in the South right after the Civil War ended. Those experiences are reenforced touring the museum.

I give the book a solid "B.". It spends a lot of time looking at the other key players in the Andrew Johnson impeachment process. At some point, I will probably read another book that focuses on Johnson. I can't help but wonder how different things might have been in Lincoln had lived...

Sunday, December 15, 2019

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 4

A lazy morning... I had brought a couple of days of workout clothes with me, but never did make it to the exercise room any day. Tomasin had a early flight and caught the shuttle bus to the airport about 9:30 am. Snipes, Nooter and I caught the shuttle at 10:30 am.

While Nooter caught a train to the bus station downtown, I wandered almost a mile from one end of the airport to the other to visit with Snipes. I eventually caught a 12:50 pm Southwest flight from Sacramento to Orlando. Other than trying to stay south this time of year, I am not really sure why I choose this flight! Boarding with A24, I didn't get an exit row.

The flight landed in Orlando just after 3:00 pm. I had a three hour layover.

I boarded a 6:05 pm Southwest flight nonstop from Orlando to Sacramento. Boarding with A23, I got a very nice exit row aisle. It was a long flight; I got very antsy. We landed in Sacramento about 9:20 pm. I was home a little after 10 pm.

It was a great weekend. There has been some discussion about making this an annual tradition. I treasure Snipes, Tomasin, Nooter and Wallen's friendship.

Saturday, December 14, 2019

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 3

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 3

Up a little earlier than Friday morning, Tomasin and I wandered down to the concierge lounge and had breakfast. We had to switch hotels on Saturday; I am still not really sure why. We packed up the room and loaded all of the luggage in Max's car.

From there, we took an Uber to XFINITY Live! Located near the stadium, the venue contains over a dozen dining and entertainment options, including a theater, beer hall and artificial turf field.

ESPN College Gameday was broadcasting from a spot between XFINITY Live and the stadium. It was a zoo.

We wandered into the stadium about 1:30 pm for the 3 pm game.  Due to long lines, Nooter and Wallen didn't get into the game in 2018 until midway through the second quarter. This year, we ended up breezing right in. I was surprised at the number of security people wearing Secret Service vests.

Although Army scored first on a long drive, Navy won the game by the score of 31 to 7. There were only seven pass attempts in the game. Navy's only pass was by a wide receiver on a trick play!?!

It was a very unique event with lots of ceremony. The cadets from both service academies in their full dress uniforms were wandering everywhere. The energy from the cadets and the fans reminded me more of a European soccer game than an American sporting event. There was a lot of passion.

President Trump attended the game. In the first half, he was sitting in a booth about 20 yards to our left.

After the game, the group debated heading back downtown or out to the new hotel. We ended up grabbing an Uber to the Courtyard Marriott near the airport. This turned out to be a tactical mistake. There was literally only one restaurant surrounded by five or six hotels. After walking to the restaurant and back, we ended up having a late dinner in the Bistro in the lobby. After a couple of late nights, we crashed fairly early...

Friday, December 13, 2019

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 2

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 2I am rooming with Tomasin on this trip. After a late night, he and I slept until after 9 am. Unfortunately, the concierge lounge only serves breakfast on weekdays until 9 am.

One of the problems with a group this size (more than 10) is that it can be hard to get everyone moving in the same direction. We finally got everyone headed out on a search for rain pants. Afterwards, we had lunch at the Field House.

From there, we headed back towards Independence Hall. We walked through the building housing the Liberty Bell.

Next, we headed to Christ Church. Wallen wanted to find Benjamin Rush's grave. In the weeks before the trip, I was casting around for something to read and Wallen recommended Rush's biography. The Christ Church graveyard ended up being a couple of blocks from the church. We wandered the graveyard.

Sharon, Jack and I spent two days touring Philadelphia in 2009 [day 1, day 2].  We hit most of the same spots.  We were also there in 2015 picking Jack up from the month he spent at UPenn.

The next stop was the Museum of the American Revolution. We spent a couple of hours touring the museum. Laid out chronologically, the museum has a lot of information to absorb.

Back at the hotel, we settled into a spot in the lobby before getting Ubers to dinner. We had dinner at the Butcher Bar. Max's daughter Tracy had ordered THE TROUGH [ROTISSERIE GAME HEN, ASSORTED HOUSE-MADE SAUSAGES, CHEF'S CHOICE CUT OF MEAT, WILD BOAR RIBS, ROYAL WITH CHEESE, HOUSE-SMOKED BACON, KOREAN SHORT RIBS, HOUSE-CUT FRIES, GRILLED PITA]. It was more food than twenty of us could have eaten. It was more a novelty than a meal. It wasn't bad, but the cuts of meat were not that good. I finished the dinner moving to the end of the table and catching up with Nooter.

It was pouring rain when we walked out of the restaurant. After some confusion ordering the Ubers, we headed back to hotel and settled into what Nooter termed "our happy place" in the hotel lobby. It was after midnight before I headed to the room.

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 2

Thursday, December 12, 2019

2019 Army/Navy Game - Day 1

Up at 3 am, I left the house at 4 am. My rule of thumb is that I can leave the house an hour and forty-five minutes before a flight if I am not checking luggage. Even though I had a large carryon for this trip, I left two hours before the flight. I didn't need to...

I got a car charger on the sixth floor in the parking garage. I caught a 6:05 am Southwest flight from Sacramento to Phoenix. Boarding with A32, I took the back stairs and got the aisle in the two seat exit row on an older 737-700.

We landed in Phoenix about 20 minutes early. I caught a 10:10 am Southwest flight from Phoenix to Philadelphia. Boarding with A43, I ended up in the two seat exit row on a newer 737-800.

Snipes took a set of Delta flights from Sacramento to St. Paul to Philadelphia. Tomasin was originally on Southwest from Oakland to Denver to Philly, but this turned into Oakland to Midway to Philly. Snipes was originally scheduled to land 30 minutes before me, while Tomasin was more than an hour behind me. We were planning to meet at the airport.

With Snipes' flight an hour behind me due to belligerent passenger and Tomasin two hours behind me, I decided a grab an Uber into the city, rather than wait for them. It took 15 minutes for the Uber to get to me and another 35 minutes to fight our way through the traffic to the hotel.

We are spending two nights at the Marriot Old City. After some running amok trying to check in, I got into the room and then headed out to meet the group at the 2nd Story Brewing Company. Eventually, Snipes and Jim and finally Tomasin showed up. The group for the weekend includes Wallen, Nooter, Snipes, Tomasin, Jim Wallen, Vic, Rob and Max, his wife Kathy and daughter Tracy.

Jumping in an Uber, we had a very late dinner at Cantina Los Caballitos. After dinner, we took an Uber back to the hotel and settled into the bar at the Marriott. It was after 1:30 am before I wandered up to bed...

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

155 Day Streak

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

2019 Jesuit High School Lessons & Carols

The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is a service of Christian worship celebrating the birth of Jesus that is traditionally followed at Christmas. The story of the fall of humanity, the promise of the Messiah, and the birth of Jesus is told in nine short Bible readings from Genesis, the prophetic books and the Gospels, interspersed with the singing of Christmas carols, hymns and choir music.
For the fourth straight year [2016, 2017, 2018], Sharon and I went to Lessons & Carols, an evening of prayer and song presented by the Jesuit High School Chamber Singers, the Concert Choir of St. Francis High School and Jesuit Drama at the Chapel of the North American Martyrs. Sharon's brother Tom went with us for the second straight year. Sharon went by herself in 2015 while I was working in the Napa Valley. This is the eleven year that Jesuit High School has held the service.

Sunday, December 08, 2019

Drew for Dinner

After spending a few days in Sacramento working with Kyle on the music for Ranked, Drew stopped by for dinner and spent the night. Sharon made a great dinner of chicken cordon bleu, rice and broccoli.

Saturday, December 07, 2019

2019 F@rm Credit West Christmas Party

For the eighth time in the last nine years [2011, 2102, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018], Sharon and I went to the F@rm Credit West Christmas Party. In 2016, Sharon was feeling under the weather and we missed the party.

This year, it was held at the Wedgwood Weddings [Formerly the Falls Event Center] in Roseville. Sharon and I initially went to the wrong location!?!

We sat with Chris Petersen, Pete and his wife and Rob and his wife. Holly retired at the end of February. There are fewer and fewer people every year that I knew when I worked for F@arm Credit.

Friday, December 06, 2019

2019 Neighborhood Progressive Christmas Party

2019 Deterding Ranch Progressive Christmas Party

Sharon and I went to the five annual [2015, 2016, 2017, 2018] progressive Christmas Party in the Deterding Ranch neighborhood. The group included: Greg and Mitchell; Jim and Debi; Rod and Kathy; Mike and Jill; Tom and Judy; Glenn and Tanya, and; Sharon and I.

The party started the evening at Greg and Mitchell's home for hors d'oeuvre. The party then moved to our house for a sit down dinner. Sharon made individual beef wellingtons. Jill brought a citrus salad and brussels sprouts. We finished the night with dessert and an ornament exchange. Like the fall dinner party, Sharon started a Lizzo dance party!

2019 Deterding Ranch Progressive Christmas Party

Wednesday, December 04, 2019

Thank You!

From: Heringer,Mark
Sent: Tuesday, December 3, 2019 4:33 PM
Subject: Thank You!

To: Adventist Health Information Technology Technical Services Enterprise Teams

As I am fond of saying, I am an old dog. I have had the pleasure to experience a wide variety of opportunities, challenges and implementations. Yet, the last year has been somewhat unique.

Just over a year ago, we responded to the Camp Fire and the loss of the Feather River Hospital. We worked to install a number of Feather River’s applications, including the Varian cancer center and retail pharmacy systems, in the enterprise data center. We scrambled to build out temporary call centers in Roseville and Marysville and help reopen several of their clinics.

At the same time, we had a full court press under way to move the data center from Creekside to the new colocation site. The enterprise data center had been in Creekside 1 for more than sixteen years. Stretching into the first quarter of this year, the teams moved over 1,000 physical and virtual servers and about 1.6 petabytes of storage.

In March and April, there was a mad scramble to complete the technical infrastructure for the Roseville building. This culminated in moving more 1,300 people into the new building in five days in late April.

In the midst of all of this change, we updated the key components of our technical authentication systems, including upgrading ADFS, the ADFS proxy servers and the NetScaler and installing the NetScaler Unified Gateway. This was a very large lift; I have affectionally referred to the mishmash of ten year old systems and versions that were previously in place as our “popsicle stick house.” These upgrades paved the way for a much cleaner application authentication process with support for multi-factor authentication.

As we were settling into the new building, the Rideout project went off the rails. To get it back on track, we purchased, configured and installed more than 1,000 workstations and hundreds of printers and other peripherals in about seven weeks in late June, July and early August. To support this effort, IT Senior Leadership spent almost two months living in a cave in Marysville. The market teams stepped up in a big way to help with this project. In particular, Kevin led the effort, while Paul, Jason and the Central Valley team played a critical role in the printer roll out.

Starting to take a breather from the Rideout Project, Adventist Health took the covers off of Project Green in late September. In less than five weeks, we built out the technical infrastructure for a 350 employee office in Kansas City. This included workstations, printers, phones, network infrastructure and call center software.

In the fourth quarter, we also finished up a multi-year effort to install Cisco ISE in all the markets. This represents an enormous amount of work by the enterprise and market teams. This substantially increases Adventist Health’s security profile. It is just first phase of our efforts to leverage this technology.

Obviously, this is just the tip of the iceberg of all the enterprise and market projects that have taken place in the last year. As Matt has pointed out, we have made a number of rushed projects look easy…

None of this would have been possible without your hard work. Thank you!

Tuesday, December 03, 2019

2018-2019 Sacramento Kings Over/Under Wins

In his annual NBA Over/Under podcast in October, Bill Simmons, Ryen Russell and Joe House all loved the over for the Kings. I ended up making a small bet on the under before the season started. It was not because I don't like the Kings team. It is just that the Western Conference is loaded this year. The Lakers, Clippers, Rockets, Jazz, Nuggets and Trailblazers all have two major stars. I just didn't believe that they could compete this season on the same level with these teams. Obviously, I didn't expect the injuries to Fox and Bagley...
2019-2020 NBA Over/Unders

Sunday, December 01, 2019

Jack back to school

Finishing up a short Thanksgiving break, Sharon and I took Jack to the airport at 4:30 am on Sunday morning. He caught a 7:00 am Southwest flight nonstop to BWI. With the flight leaving about 30 minutes late, he was on the ground about 3:20 pm.

Jack caught an Uber about 4 pm and was back at his apartment about 5 pm; the trip took 61 minutes. He will be back in just over two weeks for Christmas break.

Saturday, November 30, 2019

2019 Napa Valley - Day 2

At The Hess CollectionIt was a little bit of a lazy morning. Jack watched Tottenham beat Bournemouth by the score of 3 to 2 in the hotel room at the Marriott, while Sharon and I had breakfast in the concierge lounge.

The plan for the morning was a museum walk and wine tasting at The Hess Collection. The Hess Art Collection is one of the world's most important private collections of contemporary art. We had a very nice guided tour of the museum; it was great to have someone explain the artists and the pieces. It is one of the few times that I can say that I have actually enjoyed contemporary art.

After the tasting, we headed to the Oxbow Public Market for lunch. It was packed with people. We waited in line and had lunch at the Hog Island Oyster Company. We have eaten there several times before. After splitting some oysters, I had Rustic Seafood Stew [shellfish, spicy herb-tomato broth, grilled levain toast], while Sharon and Jack both had Chowder [Manila clams, aromatic vegetables, bacon, potatoes, cream].

The drive home was easy. Surprisingly, except for where Highway 12 hits Interstate 80, we never really hit any traffic.

Friday, November 29, 2019

2019 Napa Valley - Day 1

At Donum EstatesAt Donum Estates
At Donum EstatesAt Donum Estates
Explore

This wine tasting showcases our coveted Reserve, Single-Block, and Library wines. The wine flight changes seasonally and for October the flight is our 2017 Russian River Chardonnay, 2017 Carneros Pinot Noir, 2015 West Slope Pinot Noir and 2013 East Slope Pinot Noir. These wines are perfectly paired with creative fresh bites from our estate garden. Following this private seated tasting, guests will be treated to a seasonal vehicle tour of Donum’s private contemporary sculptural art collection. The fall season selection features works by artists Zhan Wang, Richard Hudson, Doug Aitken and many more. Please allow 2 hours to enjoy the full experience (please note wines listed are subject to change due to limited production).
With Jack home for Thanksgiving, Sharon planned a trip to Napa for two days. Fearing the traffic, we rolled from the house at 8 am. The traffic was light?!? We stopped for coffee and breakfast at a Starbucks near on Highway 29 near American Canyon Road.

Taking our time, we rolled up to Donum Estates about 10:40 am for an 11 am tasting. Sharon booked a new tasting called "Explore." It turned out to be fabulous. We took an ATV up to the heart. After a quick glass of wine, we stopped at a small building by the pond that was set up for a private tasting with a unique view. After the tasting, we rode the ATV to the wind chimes. We finished the tour walking back through the gardens.

From there, we headed to Bouchaine Vineyards. We have been wine club members here since 2010. We did a quick tasting in the new tasting room. Afterwards, we sat outside the old tasting room and had lunch. We brought some sandwiches with us.

We headed from Bouchaine Vineyards to the Napa Valley Marriott. After we checked in, Sharon took off for the CAbi store at the Outlets. Given that I spent most of 2015 and 2016 working out of the Napa Valley and staying at this Marriott, it is always a little odd for me to come back there.

We finished the night with dinner in downtown Napa at Allergria. Sharon and I had walked by the restaurant when we were in Napa for our anniversary in October. I had WILD MUSHROOM RAVIOLI [Fresh Homemade Ravioli, Tomatoes, Wild Mushrooms, Fresh Baby Arugula, Light Roasted Garlic Cream Sauce with Italian Sausage]. Sharon had VITELLO PICCATA [Pan Seared Veal Scaloppini, On Garlic-Mashed Potatoes Sautéed Spinach, Lemon Capers White Wine Sauce]. Jack had GNOCCHI AL PESTO [Pine Nuts, Basil, Pesto Cream Sauce]. The food was solid, but expensive...

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Thanksgiving 2019

Thanksgiving 2019

Over the last seventeen years, we have only hosted Thanksgiving five times [2003, 2008, 2010, 2014, 2016]. Sharon claims that she can't cook a decent turkey...

Sharon started this fall selling the idea that the next generation should host Thanksgiving this year. Leah and Kevin accepted the challenge.

After getting home from the Run to Feed the Hungry, Sharon made a couple of pumpkin pies and a green bean casserole. We took off about 12:45 pm for Leah and Kevin's house in the Colonial Heights area of Sacramento.

The group totaled twenty-one, including: Tom; Eric and Ashley; Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia; two friends of Toms (Jim and Mary); Tim and Kathy; Eileen and Will; Erin and Cormac; Terry and Steve; Janie; Sharon, Jack and I. Ashley left before dinner to head up to her parents house in Cameron Park.

It has a very nice Thanksgiving dinner. Leah and Kevin did a great job!

2019 Run to Feed the Hungry

2019 Run to Feed the Hungry

For the fifteenth time in the last sixteen years [2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 20142013, 20122011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005 and 2004], Jack, Sharon and I ran the Run to Feed the Hungry. We entered in 2007, but I was feeling under the weather and we decided not to run before heading to San Francisco for Thanksgiving. Sharon also missed three years ago when she was feeling under the weather.

I woke up about 4:30 am in the morning and it was pouring rain.  When I walked Tiber, it was raining lightly. As a result, I had a certain amount of trepidation about the day. I have only run the race once in the rain; it poured during the race in 2011.

With Sharon and Jack planning to walk the 5k, I took off by myself at 7:15 am.  For the eighth year in a row, I parked off University Avenue.  Reversing the trend of the last couple of years, I parked near the Guy West Bridge rather than the H Street Bridge.

I am not sure how to feel about this year's results. I have come to view this run as a referendum on my fitness. Although I am a little dinged up (left foot and right hip), I felt good physically during the run. My legs felt odd during the first mile, but I settled in and was comfortable for the rest of the race. I just can't carry any speed anymore.

I ended up with a chip time of 1:03:20 for a pace of 10:12 minutes per mile. My 5k spilt was 31:26 with a pace of 10:06 minutes per mile. Using the apple watch app rather than RunKeeper, my splits were: Mile 1 - 9:51; Mile 2 - 9:57; Mile 3 - 10:16; Mile 4 - 10:14; Mile 5 - 10:24; and, Mile 6 - 10:10. The app paused at one point and missed a short segment.

Sharon and Jack drove separately and walked the 5k with Emma, Jason, Laura and Daphne (Laura's daughter). There were so many people at the 5k that it took them twenty minutes to cross the starting line. Sharon vows that she will do the 10k in the future.

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Shopping for a Christmas Tree

Last year, Sharon and I got a Christmas Tree at Bambi's Christmas Trees at Douglas and South Harding. They had a wide assortment of large trees, they flock trees and they deliver. We ended up buying a tree tagged as 11 to 12 feet.

We went back to Bambi's midday on Wednesday. They were just getting the lot geared up. With Thanksgiving so late this year and the Deterding Ranch party on Friday night, December 6, there was no way that we could pick out a tree, have it flocked, delivered and decorated in time for the party. We ended up buying a tree tagged as 10 to 11 feet. It will be delivered Monday afternoon, December 2.

This will be only the second time since 2003 that we haven't had a flocked tree. We didn't have a flocked tree was 2012.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Serritella's

Sharon, Jack and I finished up the day with dinner at Serritella's. It moved from an old building on the corner of Fair Oaks and Palm into the Milagro Centre. I had Penne Mediterranean; I won't have it again...

Monday, November 25, 2019

Jack is back!

Jack caught a nonstop United flight from Dulles to Sacramento. It took off at 5:20 pm and landed a couple of minutes early about 8:15 pm. Sharon and I picked him up.

Almost exclusively, we have used the nonstop from either Baltimore on Southwest or Dulles on United to Sacramento to travel back and forth. With three major storms hitting the country this week, this approach was a particularly good plan!

There was a giant St. Bernard in the baggage claim. [Note to self], we need to remember that we can take Tiber to the airport when we pick Jack up for the Christmas break!

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Decorating the House for Christmas

We have talked on and off about decorating the house for Christmas before Thanksgiving. With the Deterding Ranch Neighborhood Christmas Progressive Dinner scheduled for Friday, December 5, plans to go to Napa with Jack after Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving being so late (November 28), we were somewhat forced into doing it for the first time in twenty-five years.

Sharon actually started packing up the fall decorations last weekend. I started on Tuesday night bringing over a load of Christmas boxes. I made three more trips on Friday night. We pushed hard over the course of two days and are basically finished. We still need to get a tree!

Sharon is so pleased with the result that this may become the new normal. I was surprised how many other people in the area were putting up Christmas decorations this weekend.

Saturday, November 23, 2019

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

After spending the day putting up Christmas decorations followed by burgers at the Flaming Grill Cafe, Sharon and I saw A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood at the Country Club Cinema. We are starting our annual quest. From now until January 13 when the actual Oscars are announced, we will be guessing which films, actors and actress might be nominated.

The movie is inspired by the 1998 Esquire magazine article "Can You Say ... Hero?" by Tom Juno. It follows a journalist who is assigned to profile television icon Fred Rogers.

The film stars Tom Hanks as Fred Rogers and Matthew Rhys as Lloyd Vogel (the journalist). It is directed by Marielle Heller; she also directed last year's Can You Ever Forgive Me?

I enjoyed the movie and recommend it. Somewhat surprisingly, it has some fantasy elements. Although I am not sure that it will be nominated for Best Picture, I would make a small bet that Tom Hanks gets nominated for Best Supporting Actor.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Woodrow Wilson Birthplace

We visited the Woodrow Wilson Museum and Presidential Library during our East Coast trip this summer.

Woodrow Wilson Birthplace
Also known as The Manse

National Register of Historic Places #1966000926

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

This church is located at 18 N. Coalter Street, Staunton, Virginia. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 38° 09.039 W 079° 04.119.

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

Woodrow Wilson birthplace, The Manse

The house was built in 1846 and was the home of the minister of Staunton’s First Presbyterian Church. The house became the home of Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Wilson in 1855 and on December 28, 1856, Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born in this here. The Wilson Family left Staunton when the future president was still and infant and move to Augusta, George where they lived until Woodrow was about 14-years old. After the Wilson’s moved from this house is remained The Manse for the Presbyterian Minister until the late 1920’s. After President Wilson died, his second wife, Edith, returned to Staunton with plans preserve the house as a presidential memorial. The house was acquired by the Woodrow Wilson Birthplace Foundation in 1938 and was dedicated as a museum by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

360 KC-area Cerner associates will become employees of client

https://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/news/2019/10/02/cerner-adventist-health-employee-rebadging.html

Cerner Corp. and one of its big clients have swapped employees — again.

On Tuesday, Cerner (Nasdaq: CERN) informed employees working with Adventist Health — including 360 in Kansas City — that they would transition back to the organization as Adventist retakes control of its revenue cycle management. The transition reportedly will occur Nov. 4, with the employees being located at the Realizations Campus. The initial rebadging occurred early last year.

In California, Adventist will transition all its revenue cycle operations to Huron Consulting Group Inc. (Nasdaq: HURN) effective Nov. 4, an Adventist spokeswoman said. Adventist will offer to hire about 1,500 Cerner associates, and Huron plans to hire about 100, she said.

Adventist has offered all affected Cerner employees in the Kansas City area jobs with Adventist Health, a Cerner spokeswoman told the Kansas City Business Journal. In the prior employee swap, Adventist offered employees 60 days to decide whether to switch; Cerner has not said when employees must decide.

Adventist, based in Roseville, Calif., will become responsible for the employees' benefits, and rebadged employees will not have access to Cerner perks.

The move will affect employees in Cerner's IT and revenue management services in Kansas City. It's unclear how many Cerner employees in California will rebadge.

Adventist will lease space so employees can stay in their current location, the spokeswoman said.

Cerner will remain as Adventist Health’s partner for electronic medical record and integrated revenue cycle solutions, the Adventist spokeswoman said.

The faith-based nonprofit health system operates 19 medical centers and more than 280 clinics in California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii, according to its website.

In January 2018, Adventist Health turned the management of its annual revenue over to Cerner and transitioned about 275 jobs at its Roseville headquarters to the North Kansas City-based health IT company. About 70% of those employees worked in clinical IT positions, and the rest handled revenue processing, according to the Sacramento Business Journal.

At the time, Adventist President Bill Wing told the Sacramento Business Journal that he expected Cerner to retain the 275 jobs in the long term, though the nature of the jobs could change as the partnership evolved. Wing also said he expected Adventist's expanded partnership with Cerner to "reduce costs for health care operations and revenue processing by about $300 million over the next three years."

Monday, November 18, 2019

To SoCal and Back

Up at 3:30 am, I took off for the airport at 4:35 am. I took a 6:20 am Southwest flight from Sacramento to Burbank. Boarding with A7, I was able to get the nice aisle exit row seat on a 737-700. With my boss and the Cerner ITWorks leader on the flight behind me, I sat and had breakfast at the Burbank Airport.

We spent the day rounding with the market IT teams and going to the IT Governance meeting at our Glendale and Simi Valley hospitals. With all of the running amok this year, we haven't spent enough time visiting the markets. More on the last year at work in a future post.

Sitting in a meeting in Simi Valley. I got a text message from Southwest saying that our 5:40 pm flight was delayed to 7:45 pm. As a result, we took our time leaving and heading back to Burbank. As we were trying to figure out where to have dinner, I got another text saying that the flight was now scheduled for 6:30 pm. This was shortly followed by another text saying that the flight was now scheduled for 5:50 pm.

We dropped the rental car and hustled to the gate. As we were going through security, they announced that they would be boarding our flight in two minutes. I ended up getting to the gate just before they started boarding. Loading with A35 and climbing up the back stairs, I ended up in the less desirable exit row seat in an older 737-700. The flight eventually left about 6:00 pm. I got home just before 8:00 pm.

I originally hoped to have dinner with Drew and Shannon. I just couldn't figure out how to make it work with everything else that is going on this week.

Sunday, November 17, 2019

2019 Kings versus Celtics

2019 Kings versus Celtics

After having brunch at Echo & Rig in the Sawyer hotel, Larkin, Cindy, Sharon and I went to the Sacramento Kings versus Boston Celtics NBA game. It was an odd 12:30 pm tip-off.

The Kings led by as much as ten points in the first half. Trailing most of the fourth quarter, they kept the game close. On the strength of Hield and Bogdanovic's shooting and two clutch free throws by Holmes, the Kings won the game by the score of 100 to 99. Marcus Smart had a runner bounce around and off the rim at the buzzer.

Buddy Hield was the King's leading scorer. He had 35 points on 14 for 24 from the field and 7 for 12 from three. Hield didn't have a free throw?!?

I am disappointed that we didn't get a chance to see Fox or Bagley. The silver lining with their injuries is that the Kings are going to have to ride Hield and Bogdanovic.

Jaylen Brown was the leading scorer for the Celtics. He had 18 points on 7 for 16 from the field and 4 for 7 from three. Brown also didn't have a free throw...

The four of us ended up talking to Hunter and Yuli at half-time. They came around to the top of our section. We were in row B, seats 11, 12, 13 and 14 in section 108.

The four of us saw a game together last November.

The Kings have one win and one loss in games that I have seen in the 2019-2020 NBA season.

2019 Kings versus Celtics

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Ford versus Ferrari

Sharon and I have started our annual quest to see all of the films nominated in the major Oscar categories. At this point, we are guesting which films will be nominated. Saturday night, we went to see Ford versus Ferrari at the Country Club Cinema.

The film follows a team of American engineers and designers led by automotive visionary Carroll Shelby and his British driver, Ken Miles. They were dispatched by Henry Ford II and Lee Iacocca with the mission of defeating the perennially dominant Ferrari racing team at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in France. The plot follows the real life events pretty accurately!

Matt Damon plays Carroll Shelby, while Christian Bale plays Ken Miles. Bale is a chameleon; it is hard for me to believe that he is the same person that played Dick Chaney in Vice.

I enjoyed the movie, but not as much as Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It will be interesting to see if the movie is nominated for best picture. I would probably bet that it will. My guess is that Bale is more likely to get a nomination for his performance than Damon would be for his...

Friday, November 15, 2019

Mass of Remembrance for Rebecca Frame

Sharon and I met her brother Tom at St. Ignatius for a Mass of Remembrance for Rebecca Frame. Becky passed away four years ago today. Eric and Ashley were also there.

Afterwards, we went back to Tom's house for dinner. The group for dinner included Larry, Ashley, Tom, Sharon and I.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Throwback Thursday - Drew and I - 1985

This is the second of two pictures of Drew and I that I took from the wall of the barn at Drew and Shannon's wedding. It looks like it might have been taken at the "home place" in Clovis.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Epic Fail [rehearsal dinner toast]

In normal circumstances, I am an emotional person. Drew and Shannon's wedding was not a normal circumstance.

I have a deep scar from the swirl surrounding Morgan's wedding. Having a chance to be enveloped in Drew and Shannon's wedding emphasized how much I missed with Morgan's wedding. When I got up to give the toast at the rehearsal dinner, the running amok from Morgan's wedding and almost 30 years of struggles were weighing on me. I wasn't able to get through much of the speech.

In hindsight, I should have just punted and handed a copy of the speech to Sharon to read. I had a copy in my back pocket.

Here is what I tried to say:

Good evening.

Thank you for being here tonight.

Over the years, I have had the opportunity to interview a lot of people.

What fascinates me about those interviews is the arc of people’s lives.

It is amazing how little decisions made and forks in the road taken lead people to be sitting and talking to me.

Being here tonight makes me think of those interviews because Andrew and Shannon have a fascinating arc to their relationship.

More than twenty years ago, the drummer for Drew’s first band lived in the same neighborhood as Shannon. Drew will tell you that he can remember James King talking about this girl Shannon.

Over the next few years, they orbited each other. They knew many of the same people and frequented a number of the same places. Shannon’s brother Bryon played in a band that crossed paths with Drew’s band.

Like many things in Andrew’s life, the roots of this relationship date back to Sugar Loaf in 2005. Drew and I were talking the other night; he has been a camper or a counselor at Sugar Loaf for 19 years.

With Drew in Irvine and Shannon in Portland, they started a long distance relationship after connecting at Sugar Loaf. Sharon, Jack and I actually had the opportunity to meet Shannon during this period more than 14 years ago.

Long distance relationships are not easy and they ended up going in different directions. Shannon lived in Hawaii for a number of years, while Drew literally traveled the world with Milo Greene.

Then, early last year they reconnected and started down the path that led us to this evening. Sharon, Jack and I, and particularly Andrew, couldn’t be happier to have Shannon back in our lives.

So my toast tonight is to all of those little decisions made and forks in that winding road taken that have led us to this celebration here tonight!

Monday, November 11, 2019

2019 Fall East Coast Trip - Day 6

This was the first day that I sent an alarm on the trip. We were up and moving about 7 am. After staring to pack, we caught an Uber to Saxbys near Jack's apartment. We met Jack for breakfast at 8 am.

After breakfast, the three of us walked into campus and wandered through the bookstore. Jack took off for class about 9:30 am. We walked back to the hotel. Off of M Street, we walked up Dumbarton Street to Rock Creek Park. We enjoy exploring the streets in Georgetown.

We caught an Uber back to BWI about 11:30 am. The drive took about an hour. Although the driver was following Google Maps, I am very perplexed by the route that we took. For the first time, I had an odd experience with Uber billing. The initial bill was much more than I expected. I intended to try and contact Uber, but before I could I got an email with an adjustment down to the original rate that I had committed for...

Breezing through the luggage check and security with CLEAR and TSA Pre, we had a bite to eat at Vino Volo. I upgraded Sharon's boarding pass from C14 to A11. Nevertheless, we weren't able to get one of the two seat sections on a new 737.

The flight was uneventful. We are on the ground in Sacramento a little before 5 pm. In spite of multiple planes landing at the same time, the luggage showed up fast. Sharon made the point that the flight was continuing to Portland and they would want to get it unloaded quickly.

For only the second time that I can remember in the last couple of years, the garage was full when we showed up last Wednesday. We ended up at the back of the daily lot. Catching a shuttle to the lot, we were home before 6:30 pm.

I am already scheming how I can get back to see baby Lee!

Sunday, November 10, 2019

2019 Fall East Coast Trip - Day 5

JackFor the second day in a row, we slept late. We eventually wandered down to breakfast in the concierge lounge. After breakfast, I did 40 minutes and three miles on the treadmill.

After getting cleaned up, we took an Uber into Georgetown. With Jack running a little late, we walked down along the waterfront and checked out the restaurant for dinner.

We met Jack for lunch at Sweetgreens. After lunch, the three of us took an Uber to Safeway and bought a few groceries for Jack. We caught another Uber back to his apartment from the store. My only comment on the afternoon is that Jack and his mom are two peas in a pod...

From Jack's apartment, Sharon and I took an Uber to the Dumbarton Oaks Museum. Dumbarton Oaks is a historic estate in the Georgetown. The upper sixteen acres were transferred to Harvard University in 1940 to establish a research institute for Byzantine studies, Pre-Columbian studies, and studies in the history of gardens and landscape architecture. We toured the Byzantine and Pre-Columbia artifacts on display. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the Pre-Columbian pieces. Sharon spotted an interesting painting by El Greco [The Visitation] in the music room. After touring the museum, we walked through the gardens.

From there, we walked down to M Street. We had a couple glasses of wine at ENO Wine Bar. This is another of our favorite Georgetown spots. We showed up just as it opened at 4 pm on a Sunday afternoon. Within a few minutes, it was packed and turning people away.

We walked back to the hotel. Along the way, Sharon spotted a couple of restaurants for future trips including: an Italian restaurant - Ristorante La Perla; and, a Japanese/Peruvian restaurant - Nabu.

We finished the night with dinner at Reverie. We shared Scallop Crudo [Buttermilk/Dill/Dried Scallop], Agnolotti [Mentaiko/Tobiko/Chili], a very good Burger [Misozuke/Special Sauce/Smoked Cheddar] and Lamb [Smoked Butter/Spruce/Tapioca]. We sat at the counter and watched the chefs. Although we had some confusion with the menu, I would definitely go back. They have a tasting menu that I would love to try.

Catching an Uber back to the hotel, we crashed after two late nights. I fell asleep watching the Sunday football game between the Vikings and the Cowboys.

Saturday, November 09, 2019

2019 Fall East Coast Trip - Day 4

With Sharon feeling under the weather, we slept late and had a very slow start to the day. I went for a hour plus run on the treadmill covering just over five miles. Eventually, I brought her some food from the concierge lounge.

Getting cleaned up and finally getting going, we went to The Phillips Collection. Sharon had been there before with Mary Maloney. The permanent collection included Pierre-Auguste Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party and Vincent van Gogh's The Road Menders. There was a special exhibit titled BONNARD TO VUILLARD: THE INTIMATE POETRY OF EVERYDAY LIFE.



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Afterwards, we headed to the Sovereign. We first went to this bar/restaurant in 2016 and it has been a regular stop over the last three years. Jack met us there for a late lunch.

From there, we headed to the rooftop bar at the Graham Hotel. Sharon and I have also been there before. We are going to miss our trips to Georgetown when Jack graduates. We have a number of favorite haunts and enjoy finding new ones.

Having turned 21 in August, Jack wanted to take us to a couple of his favorite places. Walking back towards campus, we met up with Sophia. The four of us took an Uber to the Dacha beer garden. We met up with another of his friends (Helen). The five of us visited, watched the LSU/Alabama game and split some share plates of mac and cheese, brussel sprouts and cabbage rolls.

Eventually, we caught an Uber to Booeymonger in Georgetown. Sharon, Jack, Sophia and I finished the night there with a couple of pitchers of Shock Top.

By the time, we split up and Sharon and I caught an Uber back to the hotel, it was 11:30 pm. I fell asleep watching Saturday Night Live. I woke up about 1:30 am with the television blaring...