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Monday, August 16, 2004
Sunday, August 15, 2004
Florida Day 12
Today was a long day of a lot of walking. After eating the continental breakfast at the hotel, we started walking down Duval Street. We made a stop at The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory. Sharon and Jack enjoyed walking among hundreds of living butterflies.
The next stop was the southernmost point in the continental United States for a few pictures. From here, we started back up Whitehead Street towards the Lighthouse and the Hemingway House through the Bahama Village. We did a guided tour of the Hemingway House. Although my sister Lee Ann was less than positive about her experience visiting the Hemingway House, Sharon and I enjoyed it. The guide did a good job of talking about the history of the house and the life of Hemingway.
We walked up Whitehead and back over to Duval Street. We stopped and had lunch at Sloppy Joe's. This is the namesake of the bar that Hemingway spent a lot of time in while he lived in Key West. After lunch, Sharon did some jewelry window shopping. At this point, we were close to the other end of Duval Street and could see a Disney Cruise Ship docked at Mallory Square.
Heading back to the hotel, I cooled off in the pool, while Sharon and Jack built a lego Hogwarts Train that Jack had gotten at Downtown Disney's huge Lego store.
While Sharon took a nap, Jack and I headed out to check out Fort Zachary Taylor. Fort Taylor was strategically one of the most important forts in the United States because it defended not only the waters around Key West, but also controlled the surrounding waterways of the Straits of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. When we got back from this, we all jumped back into the pool for a while to cool down.
Cleaning up, we headed back to Duval Street and dinner. Jack got a shark painted on his arm. We ended up having dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. We finished the night buying a few t-shirts before ending back to the hotel.
The next stop was the southernmost point in the continental United States for a few pictures. From here, we started back up Whitehead Street towards the Lighthouse and the Hemingway House through the Bahama Village. We did a guided tour of the Hemingway House. Although my sister Lee Ann was less than positive about her experience visiting the Hemingway House, Sharon and I enjoyed it. The guide did a good job of talking about the history of the house and the life of Hemingway.
We walked up Whitehead and back over to Duval Street. We stopped and had lunch at Sloppy Joe's. This is the namesake of the bar that Hemingway spent a lot of time in while he lived in Key West. After lunch, Sharon did some jewelry window shopping. At this point, we were close to the other end of Duval Street and could see a Disney Cruise Ship docked at Mallory Square.
Heading back to the hotel, I cooled off in the pool, while Sharon and Jack built a lego Hogwarts Train that Jack had gotten at Downtown Disney's huge Lego store.
While Sharon took a nap, Jack and I headed out to check out Fort Zachary Taylor. Fort Taylor was strategically one of the most important forts in the United States because it defended not only the waters around Key West, but also controlled the surrounding waterways of the Straits of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico. When we got back from this, we all jumped back into the pool for a while to cool down.
Cleaning up, we headed back to Duval Street and dinner. Jack got a shark painted on his arm. We ended up having dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. We finished the night buying a few t-shirts before ending back to the hotel.
Saturday, August 14, 2004
Florida Day 11
I got up early and when to run on the treadmill, while Jack and Sharon were still asleep. After I got back Sharon went down to the health club. We checked out of the Biltmore and headed back to back to Cocowalk for breakfast at the Green Street Cafe.
After breakfast, we did a driving tour of Coral Gables. Coral Gables is a planned community developed by George Merrick in the 1920's. The tour included two of the four original four grand entrances and six of Merrick's Disneyesque international villages. It is a very nice residential area and only reinforces some of our dissatisfaction with our current neighborhood.
By 12:45 p.m., we started the 160 mile drive to Key West. I really liked the drive down the Keys; it was a very unique experience. We got to our hotel in Key West a little after 4 p.m.
We got a great two story room with a pool right outside our door at the Ambrosia House in Key West. This is on Fleming Street two blocks off Duval Street.
Jack and I swam for a while in the pool right outside our door. We then headed down Duval Street. We ended up having dinner at A&B Oyster House on the broadwalk in the old port. (Sharon had Hogfish! I had Dolphin.)
We then headed back to Mallory Square to watch the performance artists and the sunset and browse the street vendors. Jack's favorite was a show that featured trained house cats jumping through hoops and doing tricks.
We wandered back up Duval Street. Sharon was looking for a Key West Italian Charm which she finally found. We got back to the room a little after 10 p.m.
After breakfast, we did a driving tour of Coral Gables. Coral Gables is a planned community developed by George Merrick in the 1920's. The tour included two of the four original four grand entrances and six of Merrick's Disneyesque international villages. It is a very nice residential area and only reinforces some of our dissatisfaction with our current neighborhood.
By 12:45 p.m., we started the 160 mile drive to Key West. I really liked the drive down the Keys; it was a very unique experience. We got to our hotel in Key West a little after 4 p.m.
We got a great two story room with a pool right outside our door at the Ambrosia House in Key West. This is on Fleming Street two blocks off Duval Street.
Jack and I swam for a while in the pool right outside our door. We then headed down Duval Street. We ended up having dinner at A&B Oyster House on the broadwalk in the old port. (Sharon had Hogfish! I had Dolphin.)
We then headed back to Mallory Square to watch the performance artists and the sunset and browse the street vendors. Jack's favorite was a show that featured trained house cats jumping through hoops and doing tricks.
We wandered back up Duval Street. Sharon was looking for a Key West Italian Charm which she finally found. We got back to the room a little after 10 p.m.
Friday, August 13, 2004
Florida Day 10
Sharon got up and ran on the treadmill and lifted weights, while I tried to order room service. One of the struggles that we have had on this trip is getting Jack to order something to eat. I spent 10 minutes going over the room service menu with Jack trying to order something for him. He finally decided on something, but when it got to the room it was not what he thought it was going to be.
After watching the weather for a while, we headed out for South Beach.
The South Beach area is very cool; it includes hundreds of buildings restored to their early 20th-century art deco appearance. We walked along Ocean Drive, while Sharon wandered in and out of a few shops. We ended up having lunch at the Fox Cafe, the restaurant in the Casa Grande Suite Hotel.
Although I have tried to avoid thinking about work, I did a 15 minute conference call about the data center migration at Mill-Peninsula.
After lunch, we walked back up the beach. There are some interesting art deco lifeguard huts on the beach.
We then headed to Litte Havana. We stopped at the El Credito Cigar Factory. We watched them making cigars for a while and then bought a few to bring home.
Although I brought enough clothes for the whole two weeks, Sharon had planned on doing laundry. We had scouted a Laundromat near the hotel earlier and we dropped Sharon there while Jack and I went back to the hotel.
After picking Sharon up, the three of us headed to the hotel pool for a an hour. For dinner, we headed to the CocoWalk and ended up having dinner at Cafe Tu Tu Tango. This was also an interesting dining experience. They claim that the restaurant is modeled after a Barcelona Cafe. There were artist painting in the middle, original artwork hanging around the restaurant and a large high definition display showing a rotating set of masterpieces. Sharon had fun identifying and talking about the masterpieces as they were displayed. When we finished with dinner, Sharon did some shopping. She lamented that she had not found this area of Coral Gables earlier!
After watching the weather for a while, we headed out for South Beach.
The South Beach area is very cool; it includes hundreds of buildings restored to their early 20th-century art deco appearance. We walked along Ocean Drive, while Sharon wandered in and out of a few shops. We ended up having lunch at the Fox Cafe, the restaurant in the Casa Grande Suite Hotel.
Although I have tried to avoid thinking about work, I did a 15 minute conference call about the data center migration at Mill-Peninsula.
After lunch, we walked back up the beach. There are some interesting art deco lifeguard huts on the beach.
We then headed to Litte Havana. We stopped at the El Credito Cigar Factory. We watched them making cigars for a while and then bought a few to bring home.
Although I brought enough clothes for the whole two weeks, Sharon had planned on doing laundry. We had scouted a Laundromat near the hotel earlier and we dropped Sharon there while Jack and I went back to the hotel.
After picking Sharon up, the three of us headed to the hotel pool for a an hour. For dinner, we headed to the CocoWalk and ended up having dinner at Cafe Tu Tu Tango. This was also an interesting dining experience. They claim that the restaurant is modeled after a Barcelona Cafe. There were artist painting in the middle, original artwork hanging around the restaurant and a large high definition display showing a rotating set of masterpieces. Sharon had fun identifying and talking about the masterpieces as they were displayed. When we finished with dinner, Sharon did some shopping. She lamented that she had not found this area of Coral Gables earlier!
Thursday, August 12, 2004
2004 Florida - Day 9
This is the first time in more than a hundred years that two major tropical storms have hit Florida at the same time. Bonnie is coming ashore in the panhandle, while Charlie is threatening the Florida Keys and then the west coast including Tampa and St. Petersburg. We spent some time in the morning watching all of the weather reports to try and figure out what is going to happen over the next couple of days. All in all, it appears that we are in the best possible spot to ride out the weather.
I ran a quick 3 plus miles on the treadmill. Afterwards, we had breakfast at the hotel.
After breakfast, we headed to Vizcaya. Described as Florida's grandest residence, it was completed in 1916 as the winter retreat for millionaire industrialist James Deering. We toured the house and gardens. Jack had a great time leading us using the self-guided tour map.
When we were done with the tour, we headed to the Miracle Mile section of Coral Gables. We had lunch at an interesting place called the Atlanta Bread Company.
From here, we headed to check out the Coral Gables Historic Venetian Pool. Formed from a coral rock quarry in 1923, Venetian Pool is included in the National Register of Historic Places. Originally, we had been considering spending the afternoon swimming there, but decided just to head back to the hotel pool. Jack and I spent an hour and a half in the pool, while Sharon went to the hotel Spa.
For dinner, we headed to Texas de Brazil. Sharon had found this in a local dining guide. The hotel tried to steer us away from going there because it was pretty far away, but both Sharon and I were intrigued by the description. The restaurant features a very large seasonal salad bar. Once you have had your salad, roaming carvers serving beef, lamb, chicken, pork and Brazilian sausage come to the table. It was probably one of the most unique dining experiences that either Sharon or I have had.
I ran a quick 3 plus miles on the treadmill. Afterwards, we had breakfast at the hotel.
After breakfast, we headed to Vizcaya. Described as Florida's grandest residence, it was completed in 1916 as the winter retreat for millionaire industrialist James Deering. We toured the house and gardens. Jack had a great time leading us using the self-guided tour map.
When we were done with the tour, we headed to the Miracle Mile section of Coral Gables. We had lunch at an interesting place called the Atlanta Bread Company.
From here, we headed to check out the Coral Gables Historic Venetian Pool. Formed from a coral rock quarry in 1923, Venetian Pool is included in the National Register of Historic Places. Originally, we had been considering spending the afternoon swimming there, but decided just to head back to the hotel pool. Jack and I spent an hour and a half in the pool, while Sharon went to the hotel Spa.
For dinner, we headed to Texas de Brazil. Sharon had found this in a local dining guide. The hotel tried to steer us away from going there because it was pretty far away, but both Sharon and I were intrigued by the description. The restaurant features a very large seasonal salad bar. Once you have had your salad, roaming carvers serving beef, lamb, chicken, pork and Brazilian sausage come to the table. It was probably one of the most unique dining experiences that either Sharon or I have had.
Wednesday, August 11, 2004
Florida Day 8
Part of the reason that Sharon wanted to stay in Key Largo was John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. This is part of North America's only live coral reef system. It extends 200 miles along the length of the Keys, from Miami to the Dry Tortugas.
We made arrangements to go snorkeling with Caribbean Watersports. The boat left at 9:00 a.m. and actually took us to the two spots in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The first spots was called Hen and Chicks, while the second spot was The Rocks. Jack got in the water for about 10 minutes at the spot. Long enough to put his face down in the water and take a picture or two with the waterproof camera. Once he got his first mouth full of salt water, he decided to head back to the boat. Jack was also a little concerned because there were a number of purple jellyfish in the water around the boat that people were working to avoid. Nevertheless, I was pretty proud of the fact that we would get in the ocean a couple miles out to sea!
While the water was not super clear, I felt like both spots were pretty good snorkeling locations. There were lots of fish and the coral formations very close to the surface. Sharon and I are both divers, but did not feel comfortable trying to arrange to leave him for most of the day while we went out on a dive trip.
By the time, we got back to the room, packed up and checked out it was almost 1:30 p.m. At this point, we were faced with a problem. We had reservations for the next three nights in Key West. Unfortunately, with Hurricane Charlies approaching, tourist were kicked out of the Keys below mile marker 72. We started driving south and making some phone calls. Our original plan had three nights in Key West followed by three nights in Miami. Sharon called the hotel in Miami and they had rooms so we swapped our reservations to the next three days. I called the hotel in Key West and moved our reservations to Saturday, Sunday and Monday. With any luck, Hurricane Charlie will be through Florida by Saturday and we can start back down the Keys. If not, we will have a couple of days to improvise.
We turned around and started north to Miami. After a quick stop for mexico food in Key Largo, we got to The Biltmore Hotel-Coral Gables about 4:30 p.m.
Over the last three days, we have changed hotels every day. Each night when we got to the hotel, we would spend a couple of hours in the pool. The pool at the Biltmore was at one time the largest hotel pool in the United States. Jack and I spent an hour playing catch while Sharon did a water aerobics class.
We had dinner outside in the courtyard at the 1200 Restaurant.
We made arrangements to go snorkeling with Caribbean Watersports. The boat left at 9:00 a.m. and actually took us to the two spots in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The first spots was called Hen and Chicks, while the second spot was The Rocks. Jack got in the water for about 10 minutes at the spot. Long enough to put his face down in the water and take a picture or two with the waterproof camera. Once he got his first mouth full of salt water, he decided to head back to the boat. Jack was also a little concerned because there were a number of purple jellyfish in the water around the boat that people were working to avoid. Nevertheless, I was pretty proud of the fact that we would get in the ocean a couple miles out to sea!
While the water was not super clear, I felt like both spots were pretty good snorkeling locations. There were lots of fish and the coral formations very close to the surface. Sharon and I are both divers, but did not feel comfortable trying to arrange to leave him for most of the day while we went out on a dive trip.
By the time, we got back to the room, packed up and checked out it was almost 1:30 p.m. At this point, we were faced with a problem. We had reservations for the next three nights in Key West. Unfortunately, with Hurricane Charlies approaching, tourist were kicked out of the Keys below mile marker 72. We started driving south and making some phone calls. Our original plan had three nights in Key West followed by three nights in Miami. Sharon called the hotel in Miami and they had rooms so we swapped our reservations to the next three days. I called the hotel in Key West and moved our reservations to Saturday, Sunday and Monday. With any luck, Hurricane Charlie will be through Florida by Saturday and we can start back down the Keys. If not, we will have a couple of days to improvise.
We turned around and started north to Miami. After a quick stop for mexico food in Key Largo, we got to The Biltmore Hotel-Coral Gables about 4:30 p.m.
Over the last three days, we have changed hotels every day. Each night when we got to the hotel, we would spend a couple of hours in the pool. The pool at the Biltmore was at one time the largest hotel pool in the United States. Jack and I spent an hour playing catch while Sharon did a water aerobics class.
We had dinner outside in the courtyard at the 1200 Restaurant.
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
Florida Day 7
Although it was after midnight by the time Sharon and i finished dinner, walked on the beach and got back to the room, I got up early and ran a slow 5 miles on the treadmill. Aferwards, Sharon did a spin class. We packed up and had brunch at the Terrace at the hotel. This is really the first place on the trip that we left reluctantly; we could have spent three or four days.
We headed south into the Everglades. We had looked at a number of different things that we could do in the everglades and decided that we would take an airboat tour. The hotel had recommended Speedy Johnsons Florida Everglades Airboat Tours in Everglades City. It was very cool. We took an hour plus tour through the mangrove forest and the grass plains. We came across a number of alligators. As we were walking away from the airboat, Jack said "can we go again!"
From Everglades City, we drove east across the Everglades and down into the Florida Keys. We had a reservation at the Sheraton Beach Resort in Key Largo. This was our longest day of driving and we did not get there until after 5:30 p.m. After checking in, we spent two hours in the pool. We had a very late dinner (Sharon had a ceasar salad and I had some great breaded grouper) at the Treetop restaurant in the resort.
We headed south into the Everglades. We had looked at a number of different things that we could do in the everglades and decided that we would take an airboat tour. The hotel had recommended Speedy Johnsons Florida Everglades Airboat Tours in Everglades City. It was very cool. We took an hour plus tour through the mangrove forest and the grass plains. We came across a number of alligators. As we were walking away from the airboat, Jack said "can we go again!"
From Everglades City, we drove east across the Everglades and down into the Florida Keys. We had a reservation at the Sheraton Beach Resort in Key Largo. This was our longest day of driving and we did not get there until after 5:30 p.m. After checking in, we spent two hours in the pool. We had a very late dinner (Sharon had a ceasar salad and I had some great breaded grouper) at the Treetop restaurant in the resort.
Monday, August 09, 2004
Florida Day 6
Sharon got up and did a Yoga Class at the hotel. After she got back, I ran a hard 4.10 miles on the treadmill. We packed up, had room service and checked out of the hotel.
We spent the morning at the The Salvador Dali Museum. This museum boasts the most comprehensive collection of Dali's work in the world, spanning the years from 1914 to 1970. While Dali is not Sharon's "cup of tea," I was amazed at the diversity that of his work; it was interesting to see how his style changed over the course of his 55 plus year career.
Monday night is the only other night that we originally did not have a hotel reservation. Checking the web on Sunday night, I found a "cheap" room at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Florida. This is just about where we wanted to stop for the night before heading to Key Largo and Key West. It took us about two and a half hours to drive south from St. Petersburg to Naples.
We were very pleased with the room. It has a view of the hotel courtyard and fountain and beyond that the Gulf of Mexico.
After checking in, we wandered around exploring the hotel and walked on the beach. Jack wanted to go to the pool so we headed there. Jack spent about two hours playing in the pool, while we enjoyed a couple of cocktails.
We headed back to the room to enjoy the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico and get ready for dinner. Sharon had arranged for a babysitter. She and I went to dinner at the The Grill and walked on the beach after dinner.
We spent the morning at the The Salvador Dali Museum. This museum boasts the most comprehensive collection of Dali's work in the world, spanning the years from 1914 to 1970. While Dali is not Sharon's "cup of tea," I was amazed at the diversity that of his work; it was interesting to see how his style changed over the course of his 55 plus year career.
Monday night is the only other night that we originally did not have a hotel reservation. Checking the web on Sunday night, I found a "cheap" room at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples, Florida. This is just about where we wanted to stop for the night before heading to Key Largo and Key West. It took us about two and a half hours to drive south from St. Petersburg to Naples.
We were very pleased with the room. It has a view of the hotel courtyard and fountain and beyond that the Gulf of Mexico.
After checking in, we wandered around exploring the hotel and walked on the beach. Jack wanted to go to the pool so we headed there. Jack spent about two hours playing in the pool, while we enjoyed a couple of cocktails.
We headed back to the room to enjoy the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico and get ready for dinner. Sharon had arranged for a babysitter. She and I went to dinner at the The Grill and walked on the beach after dinner.
Gulf of Mexico Sunset
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Watching the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico
Watching the sunset on the Gulf of Mexico
Sunday, August 08, 2004
Florida Day 5
We got up at 3:30 a.m.! Based on our decision to stay Saturday night in St. Petersburg. We were faced with an 1 hour and 40 minute drive to Homosassa Springs to go snorkling with the manatees. We had made a reservation with Captain Mike's to go snorkling with the manatees a couple of months ago and had already paid our money. We needed to be there at 6:00 a.m.
Although it was a little bit of a struggle to get going in the morning, we had a great time. The tour company took 17 people out on a houseboat and within about 15 minutes we were in a small bay that probably had a dozen different manatees feeding in it. Jack and I got in the water and I towed him over so he could see them under the water and scratch them. After a while Sharon took Jack and I followed a group of five them away from the boat. It was pretty cool to snorkling along by myself with a group of 2,000 pound animals. They were heading around the bend away from the boats so I eventually started back towards Sharon and Jack. We got Jack back on the houseboat. Sharon and I spent some time with a group that was following a pair. Sharon got cold and headed back to the boat, while I drifted along following one. Occasionally, the manatee would roll over on its back so that people could scratch its underside. In total, I probably spent almost an hour and a half in the water. I purchased a waterproof camera and took a roll of film. I will probably try to get it developed when we get to Key West.
Afterwards, we had breakfast at a local bar and grill and then started back to St. Petersburg. We were back at the hotel by about 11:45 a.m. We crashed in the room for about an hour and a half.
In the mid-afternoon, we took off to the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts. The museum was smaller than either of us expected. Sharon liked Sea of Grass-Sunset by Jimmy Ernst, Poppy by Georgia O'Keeffe and Brittany Girl Fishing by Daniel Ridgway Knight.
Leaving the museum, we walked out on the St. Petersburg Pier. Although architecturally interesting with a nice view of the area from the fifth floor, neither of us were impressed.
We went to St. Pete's Beach for dinner at Sea Critters Cafe, Food & Bar. We had originally intended to go to another place, but the hotel said the food was better at Sea Critters. Neither Sharon or I were impressed with the food or the drinks; I think we are going to have a hard time topping the meals from the first two nights. Nevertheless, Jack had fun feeding his table scraps to the catfish!
After dinner, we walked along the beach. Given our 3:30 a.m. start, we were all in bed and asleep before 9:00 p.m.
Although it was a little bit of a struggle to get going in the morning, we had a great time. The tour company took 17 people out on a houseboat and within about 15 minutes we were in a small bay that probably had a dozen different manatees feeding in it. Jack and I got in the water and I towed him over so he could see them under the water and scratch them. After a while Sharon took Jack and I followed a group of five them away from the boat. It was pretty cool to snorkling along by myself with a group of 2,000 pound animals. They were heading around the bend away from the boats so I eventually started back towards Sharon and Jack. We got Jack back on the houseboat. Sharon and I spent some time with a group that was following a pair. Sharon got cold and headed back to the boat, while I drifted along following one. Occasionally, the manatee would roll over on its back so that people could scratch its underside. In total, I probably spent almost an hour and a half in the water. I purchased a waterproof camera and took a roll of film. I will probably try to get it developed when we get to Key West.
Afterwards, we had breakfast at a local bar and grill and then started back to St. Petersburg. We were back at the hotel by about 11:45 a.m. We crashed in the room for about an hour and a half.
In the mid-afternoon, we took off to the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts. The museum was smaller than either of us expected. Sharon liked Sea of Grass-Sunset by Jimmy Ernst, Poppy by Georgia O'Keeffe and Brittany Girl Fishing by Daniel Ridgway Knight.
Leaving the museum, we walked out on the St. Petersburg Pier. Although architecturally interesting with a nice view of the area from the fifth floor, neither of us were impressed.
We went to St. Pete's Beach for dinner at Sea Critters Cafe, Food & Bar. We had originally intended to go to another place, but the hotel said the food was better at Sea Critters. Neither Sharon or I were impressed with the food or the drinks; I think we are going to have a hard time topping the meals from the first two nights. Nevertheless, Jack had fun feeding his table scraps to the catfish!
After dinner, we walked along the beach. Given our 3:30 a.m. start, we were all in bed and asleep before 9:00 p.m.
Saturday, August 07, 2004
Florida Day 4
I got Sharon and Jack up at about 8:00 a.m. After a quick bite to eat, they headed down to the pool for a quick swim. We packed up and loaded up the car and were out of the room by about 10:30 a.m.
Sharon had seen an outlet store on the way to the hotel on Wednesday night so we spent about an hour and a half finding the store and giving her a chance to wander through the store. Leaving the outlet mall, we headed west towards Tampa Bay.
We stopped in Lakeland and had lunch at Harry's Seafood, Bar, and Grille. The service was slow and the food only fair; the hurricane that I had to drink can only be best described as weak. Sharon and I both had the Fish Wraps.
After lunch we headed to the Florida Southern College. This small college has the world's largest collection of buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Both the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel and the William H. Danforth Chapel were open and we were able to wander through them.
We continued west to St. Petersburg. Originally, we did not have a reservation for Saturday night and intended to find a place north of St. Petersburg. We had a reservation for Sunday night at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club in St. Petersburg. Sharon called early Saturday morning and got us a room there Saturday night as well. The hotel is very nice and is right on the waterfront in St. Petersburg.
Just before dinner, it started to rain like crazy. As a result, we ended up having dinner at the causal restaurant in the hotel. This was a mistake; the food could not be compared to the last two nights. After dinner, the rain had let up and we walked from the hotel almost to the end of the pier.
Sharon had seen an outlet store on the way to the hotel on Wednesday night so we spent about an hour and a half finding the store and giving her a chance to wander through the store. Leaving the outlet mall, we headed west towards Tampa Bay.
We stopped in Lakeland and had lunch at Harry's Seafood, Bar, and Grille. The service was slow and the food only fair; the hurricane that I had to drink can only be best described as weak. Sharon and I both had the Fish Wraps.
After lunch we headed to the Florida Southern College. This small college has the world's largest collection of buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Both the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel and the William H. Danforth Chapel were open and we were able to wander through them.
We continued west to St. Petersburg. Originally, we did not have a reservation for Saturday night and intended to find a place north of St. Petersburg. We had a reservation for Sunday night at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club in St. Petersburg. Sharon called early Saturday morning and got us a room there Saturday night as well. The hotel is very nice and is right on the waterfront in St. Petersburg.
Just before dinner, it started to rain like crazy. As a result, we ended up having dinner at the causal restaurant in the hotel. This was a mistake; the food could not be compared to the last two nights. After dinner, the rain had let up and we walked from the hotel almost to the end of the pier.
Florida Southern College
click on the picture for a larger copy!
Sharon and Jack
in the Frank Lloyd Wright's
William H. Danforth Chapel
on the campus of Florida Southern College
Sharon and Jack
in the Frank Lloyd Wright's
William H. Danforth Chapel
on the campus of Florida Southern College
Friday, August 06, 2004
Florida Day 3
We made a tactical error on this trip. Thinking that we would fly all day Wednesday and then hit the ground running on Thursday was a mistake. Both Sharon and Jack slept very late on Thursday morning. It was after 9:30 a.m. before they got up. We had a quick breakfast and then headed back for another run at the Magic Kingdom.
We covered a little more ground than the previous day. We rode the Indy Speedway, The Many Adventures of Winny the Pooh (again), Ariel's Grotto, Cindrella's Golden Carrousel, The Haunted Mansion (Sharon and I separately on a fastpass), the World Railroad, Liberty Square Riverboat, Swiss Family Treehouse (twice), The Magic Carpets of Aladdin (twice), The Pirates of the Caribbean (me only), Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (me only) and Mickey's Toontown Fair. Jack did better than yesterday, but was still very tentative about the rides.
About 5:30 p.m., we hurried back to the hotel, picked up the rental car and headed to Downtown Disney. The Downtown Disney in California in a pale imitation of the Orlando version; the Orlando version is 5 to 10 fold larger. It has a wide variety of shops, restaurants and nightclubs. There is even a Cirque du Soleil show.
We had dinner at Wolfgang Puck's Cafe upstairs in the dining room. Sharon and I split lamb chops and a new york strip steak. The restaurant is at the west end. After dinner, we wandered the length of Downtown Disney going in and out of a few shops and doing some shopping. By the time, we got back to the room and got Jack down for bed it was almost 11:30 p.m.
We covered a little more ground than the previous day. We rode the Indy Speedway, The Many Adventures of Winny the Pooh (again), Ariel's Grotto, Cindrella's Golden Carrousel, The Haunted Mansion (Sharon and I separately on a fastpass), the World Railroad, Liberty Square Riverboat, Swiss Family Treehouse (twice), The Magic Carpets of Aladdin (twice), The Pirates of the Caribbean (me only), Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (me only) and Mickey's Toontown Fair. Jack did better than yesterday, but was still very tentative about the rides.
About 5:30 p.m., we hurried back to the hotel, picked up the rental car and headed to Downtown Disney. The Downtown Disney in California in a pale imitation of the Orlando version; the Orlando version is 5 to 10 fold larger. It has a wide variety of shops, restaurants and nightclubs. There is even a Cirque du Soleil show.
We had dinner at Wolfgang Puck's Cafe upstairs in the dining room. Sharon and I split lamb chops and a new york strip steak. The restaurant is at the west end. After dinner, we wandered the length of Downtown Disney going in and out of a few shops and doing some shopping. By the time, we got back to the room and got Jack down for bed it was almost 11:30 p.m.
Thursday, August 05, 2004
Florida Day 2
After a late night, it was after 9:00 a.m. before Sharon and Jack got out of bed. By the luck of the draw, we ended up on one of the two upper floors that serves breakfast, probably because we got here so late that it was all they had left. The hotel is full with every Home Depot manager in the country!
The monorail actually runs through the middle of the hotel that we are staying in. We took the monorail through the Polynesian and Grand Floridian Hotels to the Magic Kingdom. Jack has been talking about the Autopia at Disneyland ever since he learned that we were coming to Disneyworld. They have a comparable ride called the Indy Speedway. We went there first and Jack had a great time.
Afterwards, he said that it was time to go back to the hotel that he was done with Disneyworld. When we started to talk about some other rides that we were going to do, he said that it was actually time to go back to California. We wandered around a little bit trying to get him pointed towards some rides and decided to feed him some more.
After some lunch, the three of us went on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Mickey's PhilharMagic, the Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean (Sharon only). All of this was a little like dentistry in the 19th century. Jack was hesitant about all of the rides.
We headed back to the room about 5 p.m. and I took Jack down to the pool. They had a mid-sized water slide. Jack thought that this was the greatest thing in the world. He spent almost an hour sliding down the slide into the pool.
We had a dinner reservation at the California Grill. This is on the top floor (15th) of the Disney Contemporary Hotel. It was a great view; we had a window table facing the sunset and looking down on the Magic Kingdom. We watched the sunset and the lights come on in the park. Sharon had ravioli (she never orders pasta!), I had a pork tenderloin and Jack had a cheese pizza.
We finished the night watching a light show on the lake from our room.
The monorail actually runs through the middle of the hotel that we are staying in. We took the monorail through the Polynesian and Grand Floridian Hotels to the Magic Kingdom. Jack has been talking about the Autopia at Disneyland ever since he learned that we were coming to Disneyworld. They have a comparable ride called the Indy Speedway. We went there first and Jack had a great time.
Afterwards, he said that it was time to go back to the hotel that he was done with Disneyworld. When we started to talk about some other rides that we were going to do, he said that it was actually time to go back to California. We wandered around a little bit trying to get him pointed towards some rides and decided to feed him some more.
After some lunch, the three of us went on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Mickey's PhilharMagic, the Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean (Sharon only). All of this was a little like dentistry in the 19th century. Jack was hesitant about all of the rides.
We headed back to the room about 5 p.m. and I took Jack down to the pool. They had a mid-sized water slide. Jack thought that this was the greatest thing in the world. He spent almost an hour sliding down the slide into the pool.
We had a dinner reservation at the California Grill. This is on the top floor (15th) of the Disney Contemporary Hotel. It was a great view; we had a window table facing the sunset and looking down on the Magic Kingdom. We watched the sunset and the lights come on in the park. Sharon had ravioli (she never orders pasta!), I had a pork tenderloin and Jack had a cheese pizza.
We finished the night watching a light show on the lake from our room.
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
Florida Day 1
A long travel day... We got up at 5:30 a.m. Pacific time and left for the airport at 7:20 a.m. Sharon, Jack and I took a 9:45 a.m. American flight to Dallas. Originally, we had a little over an hour layover. Sometime after I booked the flights, the connection time got changed to 2 1/2 hours. The flight left Dallas at 5:40 p.m. Central time and landed in Orlando at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time. By the we got our luggage, picked up the rental car and checked into the Disney Contemporary Hotel, it was after 11:00 p.m. We got some room service and ended up getting to bed at 1:00 a.m.
Tomorrow, the Magic Kingdom!
Tomorrow, the Magic Kingdom!
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
Almanor Day 4
Normally we spend a week at Lake Almanor. This year, we decided to do a two week trip to Florida as well as part of Almanor trip during the break between Jack's summer school and the start of first grade. We got up this morning and started packing and cleaning up the cabin.
After getting almost everything packed and loaded in the truck, I went down and got Tomasin to take Jack and I out on the boat one last time. Jack went in the tube and ended up getting soaked.
We took off about 10:15 a.m. Heading down the Feather River Canyon, we made one quick stop in Oroville and were back in Elk Grove by 1:30 p.m.
I cut this year's trip to Lake Almanor short with a heavy heart. Since 1985 when we went to Lake Trinity with this group, I have wandered through some personal trials and tribulations. The one thing that has been constant through all of these years has been this group of friends and this annual trip to the Lake has been a touchstone for that friendship.
After getting almost everything packed and loaded in the truck, I went down and got Tomasin to take Jack and I out on the boat one last time. Jack went in the tube and ended up getting soaked.
We took off about 10:15 a.m. Heading down the Feather River Canyon, we made one quick stop in Oroville and were back in Elk Grove by 1:30 p.m.
I cut this year's trip to Lake Almanor short with a heavy heart. Since 1985 when we went to Lake Trinity with this group, I have wandered through some personal trials and tribulations. The one thing that has been constant through all of these years has been this group of friends and this annual trip to the Lake has been a touchstone for that friendship.
Monday, August 02, 2004
Almanor Day 3
Wallen and I went out for an early run. We covered the same 4 mile course that I had covered the previous day. Over the first half of the run, we had an interesting discussion about the ten commandments as I was gasping for breathe. During the last half, Wallen left me in his dust.
Tomasin and I took out his boat with Jack, Mike and Chris. Tomasin used a board that I do not know how to spell the name of, Chris and Mike wakeboarded and I single skied. The water was calmer than Sunday. Afterwards, Tomasin went back out with Dave and his friend Kurt. Chris, Mike and Jack dragged the tubes to the owner's house and got him to pump the tubes up with this pump.
For lunch, we loaded up the boats and headed to the Hamburger Hut at the Lassen View Resort. We had a long leisurely lunch. Unfortunately, the wind picked up and made both refueling the boat and the ride an adventure.
Back at the Dorado Inn, Hunter, Wallen, Tomasin and I took Mike and Jack back out for them to go tubing. We had two tubes behind the boat and the boys had a great time riding the tubes side-by-side. Once Jack got tired, Wallen and then Tomasin took turns riding with Mike. Nathan bought the Wallen's boat out and we eventually picked up Becky and her friend Amber from that boat. They took a couple of turns riding on the tubes between the Tomasin's boat.
Tomasin made up a batch of fuzzy navels which we enjoyed while waiting for Bob Wallen and Mary Rose to cook up a dinner of barbecued chicken. During dinner, I was marveling at the number of older kids. We had 8 adults and 18 "kids." Six of the kids are older than 20 and 10 of the kids are between 13 and 19. Only Jack and Mike are younger than 13. Jack did a great job of hanging with the older kids.
It is also interesting to note that the adults have definitely slowed down at night over the last twenty years! Although we still have our moments, we do not party as hard was we once did.
Almanor Day 4
Tomasin and I took out his boat with Jack, Mike and Chris. Tomasin used a board that I do not know how to spell the name of, Chris and Mike wakeboarded and I single skied. The water was calmer than Sunday. Afterwards, Tomasin went back out with Dave and his friend Kurt. Chris, Mike and Jack dragged the tubes to the owner's house and got him to pump the tubes up with this pump.
For lunch, we loaded up the boats and headed to the Hamburger Hut at the Lassen View Resort. We had a long leisurely lunch. Unfortunately, the wind picked up and made both refueling the boat and the ride an adventure.
Back at the Dorado Inn, Hunter, Wallen, Tomasin and I took Mike and Jack back out for them to go tubing. We had two tubes behind the boat and the boys had a great time riding the tubes side-by-side. Once Jack got tired, Wallen and then Tomasin took turns riding with Mike. Nathan bought the Wallen's boat out and we eventually picked up Becky and her friend Amber from that boat. They took a couple of turns riding on the tubes between the Tomasin's boat.
Tomasin made up a batch of fuzzy navels which we enjoyed while waiting for Bob Wallen and Mary Rose to cook up a dinner of barbecued chicken. During dinner, I was marveling at the number of older kids. We had 8 adults and 18 "kids." Six of the kids are older than 20 and 10 of the kids are between 13 and 19. Only Jack and Mike are younger than 13. Jack did a great job of hanging with the older kids.
It is also interesting to note that the adults have definitely slowed down at night over the last twenty years! Although we still have our moments, we do not party as hard was we once did.
Sunday, August 01, 2004
Almanor Day 2
Today was a great example of the type of days that we have spent at Lake Almanor over the last seventeenth years. We spent lots of time in the boats, had lunch at one of the spots around the lake and had a great dinner put together by one of the families. In between all of these activities, Jack found time to play badminton, basketball and golf with the rest of the kids.
I got up about 7:30 a.m. Everyone else's cabins were dark and quiet. I went out for a four mile run heading north along the Lake.
It was close to 9:30 a.m. before everyone started to stir. Jack, Morgan and I went out on the Tomasin boat with Robbie, Mike and Tomasin. Mike wakeboarded, I single skied and Morgan skied on doubles. We had three boats out on the water: Tomasins, Hunters and Chabriers. The boats stopped together out on the lake, while everyone swam and shoot each other with squirt guns.
Heading back to the dock, we were planning on going to the Hamburger Hut for lunch. We found out that John and Jill Wallen had taken Julie Tomasin and headed for Plumas Pines for lunch. We changed direction and took the boats to Plumas Pines.
After lunch, Jack, Morgan and I went out on the Wallen's boat to take Jack tubing. We tubed Jack for a long time and then Jill dragged me behind the boat for a while on the tube. We finished up by dragging Jack all the way back to the dock on the tube.
The Dorado Inn changed hands a few years ago and the new owners started the tradition of hosting a cocktail hour on Sunday afternoons. Once the cocktail hour wound down, everyone drifted down to the barbecues to supervise Wallen while he cooked tri-tips.
We ended up eating dinner pretty late. After dinner, we had cake and ice cream for Robby Hunter's birthday; he turned 20 years old today. The adults ended the day talking around the picnic tables, while the kids wandered off to watch movies and play cards.
Almanor Day 3
I got up about 7:30 a.m. Everyone else's cabins were dark and quiet. I went out for a four mile run heading north along the Lake.
It was close to 9:30 a.m. before everyone started to stir. Jack, Morgan and I went out on the Tomasin boat with Robbie, Mike and Tomasin. Mike wakeboarded, I single skied and Morgan skied on doubles. We had three boats out on the water: Tomasins, Hunters and Chabriers. The boats stopped together out on the lake, while everyone swam and shoot each other with squirt guns.
Heading back to the dock, we were planning on going to the Hamburger Hut for lunch. We found out that John and Jill Wallen had taken Julie Tomasin and headed for Plumas Pines for lunch. We changed direction and took the boats to Plumas Pines.
After lunch, Jack, Morgan and I went out on the Wallen's boat to take Jack tubing. We tubed Jack for a long time and then Jill dragged me behind the boat for a while on the tube. We finished up by dragging Jack all the way back to the dock on the tube.
The Dorado Inn changed hands a few years ago and the new owners started the tradition of hosting a cocktail hour on Sunday afternoons. Once the cocktail hour wound down, everyone drifted down to the barbecues to supervise Wallen while he cooked tri-tips.
We ended up eating dinner pretty late. After dinner, we had cake and ice cream for Robby Hunter's birthday; he turned 20 years old today. The adults ended the day talking around the picnic tables, while the kids wandered off to watch movies and play cards.
Saturday, July 31, 2004
Almanor Day 1
After a stop at Starbucks, Jack, Morgan and I left Elk Grove about 9:45 a.m. and headed up the valley towards Lake Almanor. We took highway 99 through Yuba City, stopping in Gridley for a subway sandwich, to Chico and then picked up highway 32 to highway 36 into Chester. We rolled into the Dorado Inn about 1:15 p.m. The Wallens showed up about 2:15 p.m. We worked on getting all of the cars unloaded and then John, Jill and I sat on the boat ramp and enjoyed the view of the lake.
Hunter showed up about 5:15 p.m. and the Tomasin's rolled in a little after 6:00 p.m. Jack spent most of the afternoon running around with the big boys playing golf with Danny, hanging out in the Hunter's cabin and then playing Basketball with Mike Tomasin.
Tomasin and Hunter ran out and got pizza for the group. Tomasin, Julie, Wallen, Jill, Hunter and I ended the evening sitting around the picnic tables and catching up.
Almanor Day 2
Hunter showed up about 5:15 p.m. and the Tomasin's rolled in a little after 6:00 p.m. Jack spent most of the afternoon running around with the big boys playing golf with Danny, hanging out in the Hunter's cabin and then playing Basketball with Mike Tomasin.
Tomasin and Hunter ran out and got pizza for the group. Tomasin, Julie, Wallen, Jill, Hunter and I ended the evening sitting around the picnic tables and catching up.
Friday, July 30, 2004
Drew
Drew has been suffering the last couple days from some of the same symptoms that he had in May. The end result is that he is not going to make it to Almanor this year. I was really looking forward to having a chance to spend a few days with him. After two weeks of long hours as staff at Sugarloaf, he is making the right decision, albeit difficult decision, to lay low and rest up.
Thursday, July 29, 2004
HP Briefing
Yvonne Risch, John Hummel, Todd Peterson and I spent a long day at the HP Customer Center in Cupertino. The agenda included: HP's Health Care Initiative; Adaptive Enterprise; ITSM Best Partices for Service Management; OpenView for IT Service Management; Business Continuity; Storage Solutions for Healthcare; Beyond TCO, and; Integrity Servers. It was almost 9:00 p.m. by the time I got home.
We have done a lot of briefings with different companies over the last year. I try to find a couple of nuggets of information in each briefing to take back and see how I can incorporate into all the things that we have going on. Looking at my notes and thinking about the day, two things stand out.
First, several of us in my management team have been talking about ITIL and have started some fundamental training. We need to acelerate those efforts.
Second, Windows CE IPaqs are dead. As an organization, we bought a lot of IPaqs over the last few years. I am an earlier adopter and have an elephant's graveyard of stuff that stretches back more than twenty five years. The current generation of the Blackberries are the most useful and functional product that I have ever seen. We started to roll them more than six months ago and still can not keep up with the internal demand. More importantly, the people who got the devices six months ago are actually using them. The Blackberries are not ending up in the back of drawer next to the IPaqs.
We have done a lot of briefings with different companies over the last year. I try to find a couple of nuggets of information in each briefing to take back and see how I can incorporate into all the things that we have going on. Looking at my notes and thinking about the day, two things stand out.
First, several of us in my management team have been talking about ITIL and have started some fundamental training. We need to acelerate those efforts.
Second, Windows CE IPaqs are dead. As an organization, we bought a lot of IPaqs over the last few years. I am an earlier adopter and have an elephant's graveyard of stuff that stretches back more than twenty five years. The current generation of the Blackberries are the most useful and functional product that I have ever seen. We started to roll them more than six months ago and still can not keep up with the internal demand. More importantly, the people who got the devices six months ago are actually using them. The Blackberries are not ending up in the back of drawer next to the IPaqs.
Photo Galleries
Here are a couple of links to photo galleries of the mission to Saturn and Titan and the Project Apollo. The photos can be used as cool backgrounds for our computer desktop!
Cassini-Huygens-Multimedia-Images
The Project Apollo Image Gallery
Peja a no-go for Serbia's team
Peja has told the Serbian Olympic basketball team that he will not be playing in the Olympics this summer. I think that this is a very good thing for the Sacramento Kings!.
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
First Black President?!
In sharp contrast to my upbringing, Sharon was raised in a family with strong Democratic political roots. Watching Barack Obama speak at the Democratic Convention, Sharon said "He is going to be the first black President of the United States." While I do not know much about Obama, I am impressed by what I have seen. He is running for the U.S. Senate in Illinois.
Listening to Teresa Heinz Kerry speak, I wanted to learn more about her background. To find out more about her, Obama and John Heinz, I turned to the Wikipedia. This is an example of an emerging web technology that I have been following called Wiki.
Listening to Teresa Heinz Kerry speak, I wanted to learn more about her background. To find out more about her, Obama and John Heinz, I turned to the Wikipedia. This is an example of an emerging web technology that I have been following called Wiki.
Tuesday, July 27, 2004
Degree Confluence Project
Brun sent me a link to the the Degree Confluence Project. The goal of the project is to visit each of the latitude and longitude integer degree intersections in the world and to take pictures at each location. There are some very cool pictures of different parts of the world!
Kings Depth Chart
With the signing of Ostertag and Songailia, the Sacramento Kings depth chart for next season looks like this:
| PG | SG | C | SF | PF | |
| 1 | Mike Bibby | Doug Christie | Brad Miller | Peja Stojakovic | Chris Webber |
| 2 | Bobby Jackson | Kevin Martin | Greg Ostertag | Darius Songailia | |
| 3 | Ricky Minard | ||||
| 4 |
Monday, July 26, 2004
No Training Wheels!
After dinner, we took the training wheels off of Jack's bike and spent some time working with him. I was amazed at how well he did. By the end of the evening, he was riding a hundred yards by himself on two wheels. I was also impressed at how tenacious he was; when he fell, he would pop right back up and want to go again!
Kevin Martin in Summer League
From ESPN.com - NBA - Ford: The Boys of Summer:
"Martin was one of the most dominant scorers in college basketball over the past two seasons. Scouts were concerned whether Martin's skills would translate to the next level once he faced more athletic, physical defenders. They can start putting those fears to rest. Martin, by all accounts, was the most polished rookie in the L.A. summer league. He's got a smoothness to his game that is deceptive, and his ability to get to the free throw-line should guarantee him some playing time in Sacramento next season. He needs to get stronger and improve defensively, but it looks like the Kings got a steal late in the first round.
Songaila remains with Kings
Songaila will remain with Kings. The team will pay the second-year power forward $1.6 million this season. With Songailia's signing, the King's have ten players under contract for 2004-2005 season. There are still two empty roster spots that need to be filled.
Sunday, July 25, 2004
Tour de France
For the last three weeks, literally the only thing we have watched on television has been the Outdoor Life Network's coverage of the the Tour de France!
It is mostly Sharon's fault. She was rooting for Lance Armstrong to win his sixth and wanted to watch the race so we started Tivoing it. By the middle of the first week, we had live coverage in the morning and at night. Jack now knows the names of all the major riders and all about the yellow, green, white and poka dotted jerseys!
Sharon finished reading Lance Armstrong's first book, It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life, last night. Jack and I got his second book, Every Second Countsfor her to read.
It is mostly Sharon's fault. She was rooting for Lance Armstrong to win his sixth and wanted to watch the race so we started Tivoing it. By the middle of the first week, we had live coverage in the morning and at night. Jack now knows the names of all the major riders and all about the yellow, green, white and poka dotted jerseys!
Sharon finished reading Lance Armstrong's first book, It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life, last night. Jack and I got his second book, Every Second Countsfor her to read.
Saturday, July 24, 2004
Chorale Ensemble Performance
Sharon, Jack and I went to Morgan performance in the Chorale Ensemble at the Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp. They performed six songs: Obwisana; All Ye Who Music Love; Friendship Song; Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go; Down by the Riverside; and, I I've Got the World on a String. Morgan sang a solo on Down by the Riverside. I have a video clip of Morgan's solo that I have downloaded from my DV camera and edited. I will probably post that tomorrow.
On the way home, we had lunch at the Zinfandel Grille in Folsom. Sharon is shopping for a new touring bike. After lunch, we went into Bicycles Plus; Sharon looked at bikes, while I wrestled with Jack...
click on the picture for a larger copy!
On the way home, we had lunch at the Zinfandel Grille in Folsom. Sharon is shopping for a new touring bike. After lunch, we went into Bicycles Plus; Sharon looked at bikes, while I wrestled with Jack...
Friday, July 23, 2004
1975 Columbia Rugby Photo
Wandering across the web, I stumbled across this photo of the 1975 Columbia University rugby team. Based on the picture's legend, Rob Nooter is second from the right in the back row!
click on the picture for a larger copy!
Additionally, Rob is also mentioned in a brief history of the Columbia College R.F.C.
Additionally, Rob is also mentioned in a brief history of the Columbia College R.F.C.
Wallen and I were trying to remember on the phone today when we first saw Nooter wander across a rugby field in Northern California (January 1978 in Colusa?). Unless my memory is playing tricks on me, I have some strong recollections of Rob wearing the blue and white striped rugby jersey.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
2004 Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp
For the second year in a row, Drew is spending two weeks as a counselor at the Sugarloaf Fine Arts Camp. The first session Session ran from Sunday, July 11 to Saturday, July 17, while the second session started Sunday, July 18 runs to Saturday, July 24.
Morgan is spending a week at the camp during the second session. She is majoring in Chorale.
Morgan is spending a week at the camp during the second session. She is majoring in Chorale.
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
Setting up Airport Express
It rarely get over 100 degrees at our house; we are within about 1 mile of the main channel of the Sacramento River and we get a delta breeze that keeps things cooler. Today was one of those rare days where it topped 100 degrees!
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Greg Ostertag?!?
When I got into the truck after work and turned on the Sports 1140, they were playing a series of highlights of Greg Ostertag's play against the Kings. At that point, I realized that the Kings had signed Ostertag.
If you believe the Salt Lake City Tribute article, Ostertag's new deal will be worth $4 million next season. He will also own an option on returning to the Kings in 2005-06.
Divac, an unrestricted free agent, received a two-year contract that will pay him the Lakers' full $4.9 million mid-level exception next year.
For additional $900,000 a year, the Kings are much better off with Divic! It is very difficult for me to understand what the team is trying to accomplish with these two moves. There was some speculation during morning sports talk that the team hopes Peja will take more of a leadership role if he does not have Vlade to hide behind.
If you believe the Salt Lake City Tribute article, Ostertag's new deal will be worth $4 million next season. He will also own an option on returning to the Kings in 2005-06.
Divac, an unrestricted free agent, received a two-year contract that will pay him the Lakers' full $4.9 million mid-level exception next year.
For additional $900,000 a year, the Kings are much better off with Divic! It is very difficult for me to understand what the team is trying to accomplish with these two moves. There was some speculation during morning sports talk that the team hopes Peja will take more of a leadership role if he does not have Vlade to hide behind.
Monday, July 19, 2004
Photo Albums, Divac and iPods
I posted two photo albums from the Wallen's 25th Wedding Anniversary Party. A collection of photos from my digital camera can be found at:
http://www.heringer.org/WallenAnniversary/index.htm
An assortment of pictures taken with my camera phone are at:
http://heringermr.textamerica.com/?_ctgry=7071
Divac is ready to return to the Lakers. Talking to Mike Lamb on KHTK tonight, Divac said that this was all about the money. The Lakers are essentially willing to offer Divac twice as much money and a two year contract. I think that the Kings are making a mistake; Divac presence in the clubhouse has been very important to the success of this team.
Apple has announced new iPods! While they don't appear to come in different colors, the new models are smaller, cheaper and have some new features. I think that I am going to break down and buy one of these in a 40GB size.
http://www.heringer.org/WallenAnniversary/index.htm
An assortment of pictures taken with my camera phone are at:
http://heringermr.textamerica.com/?_ctgry=7071
Divac is ready to return to the Lakers. Talking to Mike Lamb on KHTK tonight, Divac said that this was all about the money. The Lakers are essentially willing to offer Divac twice as much money and a two year contract. I think that the Kings are making a mistake; Divac presence in the clubhouse has been very important to the success of this team.
Apple has announced new iPods! While they don't appear to come in different colors, the new models are smaller, cheaper and have some new features. I think that I am going to break down and buy one of these in a 40GB size.
Sunday, July 18, 2004
Jaguar
Sharon has been talking about getting a BMW or Jaguar to replace the Camray. When I was making the reservation for the rental car on-line with Hertz for this trip I noticed that they had Jaguar Type-S's which is the model that she has been lusting after. We rented one on this trip to see how we would like it!
After driving it for a couple of days, my comments are that you are a little disconnected from the road and as a result the car drifts if you are not paying attention. Additionally, I did not like the way the automatic transmission shifted at times, but this could just be this particular vehicle.
Sunday morning, we slept late and then packed. We had breakfast at the Family Pancake and Dinner House on Kitsap Way. I do not recommend the restaurant; I was underwhelmed by the food and the service.
We flew this trip on Southwest. Normally, when I fly to SeaTAC I fly Alaska or United. I am not sure that I have ever flown Southwest to SeaTAC; I will not do it again. There was about a 200 yard long line to check our bags that took about 45 minutes to navigate. At the end of this line was one of the rudest counter clerks that I have ever encountered. I think that I saved about $10 a person by flying Southwest and it was not worth it!
Overall, the rest of the trip home was uneventful and we were back in Elk Grove before 5:00 p.m.
After driving it for a couple of days, my comments are that you are a little disconnected from the road and as a result the car drifts if you are not paying attention. Additionally, I did not like the way the automatic transmission shifted at times, but this could just be this particular vehicle.
Sunday morning, we slept late and then packed. We had breakfast at the Family Pancake and Dinner House on Kitsap Way. I do not recommend the restaurant; I was underwhelmed by the food and the service.
We flew this trip on Southwest. Normally, when I fly to SeaTAC I fly Alaska or United. I am not sure that I have ever flown Southwest to SeaTAC; I will not do it again. There was about a 200 yard long line to check our bags that took about 45 minutes to navigate. At the end of this line was one of the rudest counter clerks that I have ever encountered. I think that I saved about $10 a person by flying Southwest and it was not worth it!
Overall, the rest of the trip home was uneventful and we were back in Elk Grove before 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, July 17, 2004
A Great Time!
Nathan picked a group of us up at the hotel about 4:30 p.m. and we headed over to the Wallen's for their 25th Wedding Anniversary Party. We left Jack and Jim Wallen's daughter at the hotel with a friend of Becky's. The Wallen's held the celebration in their backyard which overlooks Phinney Bay and looks West towards Olympic Mountain Range and the sunset. It was a great setting for a party; it would have been difficult to rent a more perfect spot!
click on the picture for a larger copy!
The weather was fantastic. They had a open bar with a bartender and caterers serving appetizers for about two hours while everyone arrived and mingled. There was a Jazz duet playing downstairs under the deck before dinner. In total, there were about 65 people. John and Jill then renewed their vows in a short ceremony overlooking the water.
Dinner was a great meal of New York strip steak and salmon. Sharon and I had the honor of sitting at the same table with John and Jill. After dinner, there was a DJ and a dance floor; we partied and danced until after midnight.
It was after 1:00 am by the time we got back to the hotel and almost 2:00 a.m. by the time we got to bed. It was a wonderful party! Over the course of the evening, I took more than 100 pictures and will work on a photo album over the next couple of days.
The weather was fantastic. They had a open bar with a bartender and caterers serving appetizers for about two hours while everyone arrived and mingled. There was a Jazz duet playing downstairs under the deck before dinner. In total, there were about 65 people. John and Jill then renewed their vows in a short ceremony overlooking the water.
Dinner was a great meal of New York strip steak and salmon. Sharon and I had the honor of sitting at the same table with John and Jill. After dinner, there was a DJ and a dance floor; we partied and danced until after midnight.
It was after 1:00 am by the time we got back to the hotel and almost 2:00 a.m. by the time we got to bed. It was a wonderful party! Over the course of the evening, I took more than 100 pictures and will work on a photo album over the next couple of days.
Morning run
Wallen and I went out for a morning run covering a little over seven miles in about 59 minutes for about an 8:30 minute mile pace. We ran from John's house out to Kitsap Way and then out to near the end of the point between Oyster and Ostrich Bays. Afterwards, Sharon, Jill, Molly and Allyn went out for a run. Sharon and Allyn ran about 3 3/4 miles along Chico Way, while Jill and Molly walked.
After the runs, Sharon, Jack and I headed over to Silverdale to get a present and have lunch at the Red Robin. A big group then met at the Wallen's to finish setting up for the party. We spent a couple of hours putting on the finishing touches.
After the runs, Sharon, Jack and I headed over to Silverdale to get a present and have lunch at the Red Robin. A big group then met at the Wallen's to finish setting up for the party. We spent a couple of hours putting on the finishing touches.
Friday, July 16, 2004
To Bremerton Washington
Sharon, Jack and I spent most of the day traveling to Bremerton, Washington for John and Jill Wallen's 25th Wedding Anniversary Party on Saturday night. We flew Southwest from Sacramento to the SeaTAC, rented a car and drove around to Bremerton. We got a room for two nights at the Oyster Bay Inn (The Pearl of Bremerton!?!).
Jack has been playing Chess in the extended day during summer school. I went Thursday night and got a chess set to take with us on the trip. Jack and I played our first game against each other on the plane and he beat me fair and square!
Once we got check into the hotel, we went by the Wallen's. After having a drink or two on their deck, a group that set off for dinner at the Yacht Club Broiler in Silverdale. The group for dinner included John and Jill, John's brother Jim, Jim's wife Allyn and their daughter Bailey, Jill's friend Molly, Jill's Mom, Sharon, Jack and I.
Jack has been playing Chess in the extended day during summer school. I went Thursday night and got a chess set to take with us on the trip. Jack and I played our first game against each other on the plane and he beat me fair and square!
Once we got check into the hotel, we went by the Wallen's. After having a drink or two on their deck, a group that set off for dinner at the Yacht Club Broiler in Silverdale. The group for dinner included John and Jill, John's brother Jim, Jim's wife Allyn and their daughter Bailey, Jill's friend Molly, Jill's Mom, Sharon, Jack and I.
Thursday, July 15, 2004
Financial Planner
Today is Matt and Sherry Bell's 15th Wedding Anniversary!
Sharon and I spent a couple of hours with our financial planner in the afternoon reviewing the revised plan. This is the third year that we have gone through the planning process with this group. The major issues that we talked about included buying long term health care insurance and getting all of the assets structured into the trust.
Sharon and I spent a couple of hours with our financial planner in the afternoon reviewing the revised plan. This is the third year that we have gone through the planning process with this group. The major issues that we talked about included buying long term health care insurance and getting all of the assets structured into the trust.
Wednesday, July 14, 2004
Meetings, Meetings, Meetings...
Today is John and Jill Wallen's 25th Wedding Anniversary!
This is one of those weeks that flies by with every day filled with meetings. Monday included a 4 1/2 hour senior management meeting and a two plus hour budget meeting. Tuesday afternoon was spent in a session working on the 2005 to 2007 Strategic Business Plan. On Wednesday, we hosted almost 80 people in a Lawson Summit for more than six hours. The Summit was designed to get some forward momentum on customer satisfaction and system utilization issues.
click on the picture for a larger copy!
This is one of those weeks that flies by with every day filled with meetings. Monday included a 4 1/2 hour senior management meeting and a two plus hour budget meeting. Tuesday afternoon was spent in a session working on the 2005 to 2007 Strategic Business Plan. On Wednesday, we hosted almost 80 people in a Lawson Summit for more than six hours. The Summit was designed to get some forward momentum on customer satisfaction and system utilization issues.
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
iPod or iPod Mini?
I got to see the iPod Mini that Larkin ordered from the on-line Apple Store. He thinks that he ordered in late May or early June and got it Monday. Morgan spent the last two weeks at our house loading her CDs on to the iPod that I had gotten her for her birthday. Having seen and handled both model, I am not sure which one I am going to buy. I like the size of the iPod Mini, but would love to have a 40GB model!
Maybe I should wait for the new models of iPod in August; reportedly, the top end of which will use a 60GB hard drive and be offered in purple, orange, and yellow!
I ended up having to put a new transfer case into the Explorer; it has just short of 140,000 miles on it. Interesting, Rudy has a 1998 Ford Explorer with just over 140,000 miles and he had to replace the transfer case about a month and a half ago. Lew also has a 1998 Explorer, but with only 120,000 miles. While Rudy and Lew were talking the problem Lew noted that his is making a funny noise! I recognize that a AWD (all wheel drive) vehicle puts on a tremendous strain on the transfer case, but wonder what the useful life of the transfer case should be?
Raising Kids--Who's Easier: Boys or Girls?
Maybe I should wait for the new models of iPod in August; reportedly, the top end of which will use a 60GB hard drive and be offered in purple, orange, and yellow!
I ended up having to put a new transfer case into the Explorer; it has just short of 140,000 miles on it. Interesting, Rudy has a 1998 Ford Explorer with just over 140,000 miles and he had to replace the transfer case about a month and a half ago. Lew also has a 1998 Explorer, but with only 120,000 miles. While Rudy and Lew were talking the problem Lew noted that his is making a funny noise! I recognize that a AWD (all wheel drive) vehicle puts on a tremendous strain on the transfer case, but wonder what the useful life of the transfer case should be?
Raising Kids--Who's Easier: Boys or Girls?
The article notes that when it comes to raising kids, gender matters. But our own personality and expectations may count even more. The bottom line is that raising children is hard work, regardless of gender. Some kids are just more challenging than others. Other bullets include:Girls are emotionally high maintenance. Girls talk back more. Girls' bullying can be emotionally harsher. Boys are aggressive and physical. Communication can be challenging with a boy. Stereotypes Don't Always Hold Up
Monday, July 12, 2004
Wine Tasting
Sharon and Janie spent the day wine tasting in Napa. They stopped at the Trefethen and Robert Sinskey vineyards. They had a long, late lunch at the Martini House in St. Helena.
We have had our cat Peja for one year
We have had our cat Peja for one year
Sunday, July 11, 2004
Morgan's Ear Ache plus Bike Riding
Morgan started complaining of her ear hurting on Saturday. By Sunday morning, the ear canal was swollen and she could not hear out of left ear. Morgan was originally scheduled to play the piano to accompany the choir at her church on Sunday morning. While Sharon served as eucharistic minister for communion during Mass at Good Shepherd, Jack and I took Morgan to the emergency room at Marshall Hospital in Placerville. They diagnosed her with "swimmers ear," an outer ear infection. They gave her a prescription for steroids to treat the problem. Morgan had swam laps each night while Jack was getting his swimming lessons.
In the afternoon, Jack and I went for a couple mile bike ride on a trail around the Stone Lakes development in Elk Grove. He spent the whole time pretending that he was racing in the Tour de France.
In the afternoon, Jack and I went for a couple mile bike ride on a trail around the Stone Lakes development in Elk Grove. He spent the whole time pretending that he was racing in the Tour de France.
Saturday, July 10, 2004
The Wizard of Oz
Saturday afternoon, Sharon, Jack, Morgan and I went to the Music Circus' performance of The Wizard of Oz. This is the first time I have been to the new facility; it is a very nice set-up. Everyone enjoyed the show, although Jack got a little scared during a couple of parts.
After the show, we went to Sammy Chu's for dinner. Morgan chose a great Thai BBQ Chicken dish, but we don't recommend the Miso Soup. The restaurant is located in an odd part of town at 15th and R.
After the show, we went to Sammy Chu's for dinner. Morgan chose a great Thai BBQ Chicken dish, but we don't recommend the Miso Soup. The restaurant is located in an odd part of town at 15th and R.
The Living Room Candidate
The Living Room Candidate is an interesting web site that includes presidential campaign commercials from 1952 to 2004.
Friday, July 09, 2004
2004 Best Places to Work in IT
For the 2nd Year in a row, Sutter Health System Support (SHSS) Information Technology has been rated as one of the top 100 places to work for IT professionals.
The honor is part of the weekly newspaper Computerworld 11th annual Best Places to Work in IT survey, which ranks the top 100 work environments for technology professionals using the categories of benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention.
Out of the top 100, Sutter health ranked with an impressive 34th place! This is up from 64th in 2003.
The lists are compiled based on a comprehensive questionnaire regarding company offerings in categories such as benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention. In addition, Computerworld conducts extensive surveys of IT workers, and their responses factor heavily in determining the rankings.
The honor is part of the weekly newspaper Computerworld 11th annual Best Places to Work in IT survey, which ranks the top 100 work environments for technology professionals using the categories of benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention.
Out of the top 100, Sutter health ranked with an impressive 34th place! This is up from 64th in 2003.
The lists are compiled based on a comprehensive questionnaire regarding company offerings in categories such as benefits, diversity, career development, training and retention. In addition, Computerworld conducts extensive surveys of IT workers, and their responses factor heavily in determining the rankings.
Ordinary People
After having dinner at Logan's Roadhouse, Sharon, Morgan and I watched Ordinary People on DVD. Sharon ranks this movie in her personal top ten list.
2004 Tour de France Pictures!
The grahamwatson.com site has some great pictures of the 2004 Tour de France. It has been updated every day with pictures from each stage.
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Technorati tracks 3 million blogs
Technorati tracks 3 million blogs: "On an average weekday, we're seeing over 15,000 new weblogs created per day. That means that a new weblog is created somewhere in the world every 5.8 seconds."
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Tour de France
Sharon and I have been TIVOing the Tour de France on the Outdoor Life Network every morning from 6:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m and then watching a condensed version at night.
Tuesday, July 06, 2004
sad news
From: Tom Richards
Sent: Tue 7/6/2004 5:33 PM
Subject: sad news
Sent: Tue 7/6/2004 5:33 PM
Subject: sad news
I just heard some sad news and I thought I would pass it along to each of you. Jim Seth just informed me he heard that Dennis Cleveland passed away suddenly on July 4 from a heart attack. Dennis was one of the kindest individuals I knew. To me he was one of those people who always expressed an upbeat and cheerful attitude that made working at the old Bank a real joy. I believe he was married and I’m certain he had a son who he always took fishing at his annual bass fishing tournament. Dennis was just 49 years old.Tom
Steve Nash, Michael Moore's Blog and Fahrenheit 911
I had previously noted Mark Cuban's Maverick Blog. The latest entry talks about how the Mavericks lost Steve Nash to the Phoenix Suns.
Micheal Moore has also started a blog.
Speaking of Michael Moore, the Fifty-nine Deceits in Fahrenheit 911
Micheal Moore has also started a blog.
Speaking of Michael Moore, the Fifty-nine Deceits in Fahrenheit 911
CNN.com - Kerry names Edwards his running mate
Although the New York Post reported on the front page that Gephardt had been named as Kerry's veep pick, Kerry names Edwards his running mate
Monday, July 05, 2004
Swimming Lessons and a dead truck
As far as I am concerned, few things are as important as making sure that kids can swim and are comfortable in the water. This is one of the few things that my parents did right; making sure that my sisters and I could swim at a very young age. I have lots of memories as a kid of going during the summer to the old public pool in Gridley to take swimming lessons. Jack has taken some group swimming lessons the last few years. We have not been happy with his progress, particularly last summer. We have put him in some private swimming lessons at Sharon's sports club all this week. Morgan and Sharon swam laps while Jack had his lesson.
On the way back from the hike yesterday, the tranmission in the truck started to act up. By late afternoon, it would not go into reverse. We spent Monday morning finding some place to get it looked at and getting a rental car.
On the way back from the hike yesterday, the tranmission in the truck started to act up. By late afternoon, it would not go into reverse. We spent Monday morning finding some place to get it looked at and getting a rental car.
Sunday, July 04, 2004
Lake Jenkinson at Sly Park
Sunday morning, Sharon, Jack and I headed towards Tahoe on highway 50 for a hike. We met Drew and picked up Morgan. We went to Jenkinson Lake at Sly Park. There is an eight plus mile hiking trail all the way around the lake. We went past the main entrance, across both of the dams and parked just across the second dam. The trailhead for the south side of the lake starts just across the road. The south side of the lake has no campgrounds and is a much better hike than the north side of the lake.
We ended up hiking more than 2 miles before stopping for lunch. The trail is relatively flat. Jack lead the way and sent a good pace; he kept wanting to run. For the day, we probably covered about 4 1/2 miles. This is the first hike that we have done that I did not carry Jack part of the way. He did great and did not start to ask about how much farther we were going until we were almost back to the truck.
Sunday night, the four of us sent off some fireworks in the street in front of the house.
We ended up hiking more than 2 miles before stopping for lunch. The trail is relatively flat. Jack lead the way and sent a good pace; he kept wanting to run. For the day, we probably covered about 4 1/2 miles. This is the first hike that we have done that I did not carry Jack part of the way. He did great and did not start to ask about how much farther we were going until we were almost back to the truck.
Sunday night, the four of us sent off some fireworks in the street in front of the house.
Saturday, July 03, 2004
Boat Parade, Terminal and Eightfold
Sharon and Janie Daigle have started a new tradition by going out on July 3 the last three years to watch the boat parade on the river from the Virgin Sturgeon.
Saturday afternoon, Sharon, Jack and I went to see the movie Terminal in the theater. Although a little slow in a couple of spots, I would recommend it. I particularly liked the fact that they stayed away from formula endings and did not tie up all the loose ends. You can find the trailer for the movie here.
Drew's band, Eightfold, was the featured act for the Placerville Open Mic at the Cozmic Cafe in Placerville last night. Here's a picture of Drew on guitar and Kellen Gracia on bass from a blog of someone who was there.
Saturday afternoon, Sharon, Jack and I went to see the movie Terminal in the theater. Although a little slow in a couple of spots, I would recommend it. I particularly liked the fact that they stayed away from formula endings and did not tie up all the loose ends. You can find the trailer for the movie here.
Drew's band, Eightfold, was the featured act for the Placerville Open Mic at the Cozmic Cafe in Placerville last night. Here's a picture of Drew on guitar and Kellen Gracia on bass from a blog of someone who was there.
Friday, July 02, 2004
2004 Rivercast versus Sidewinders
Sharon, Jack and I went to the Rivercats game with the Bowers. Their son Jeffery goes to school with Jack and Jack and he have gotten to be good friends. The Rivercats beat the Tucson Sidewinders by a score of 8-7 in the 12th. We actually stayed until the game ended about 11:10 p.m. The game included 30 hits and 5 errors.
It was one of those nights that you run into people you do not expect to see. While we were talking the boys to the play area, I ran into a family that we had known for five years from Jack's first daycare center; they eventually came and sat with us for the last couple of innings. Right after that, a kid comes up to me and says "Heringer." It was Craig Snipes. He was at the baseball game with a group for a birthday party.
It was one of those nights that you run into people you do not expect to see. While we were talking the boys to the play area, I ran into a family that we had known for five years from Jack's first daycare center; they eventually came and sat with us for the last couple of innings. Right after that, a kid comes up to me and says "Heringer." It was Craig Snipes. He was at the baseball game with a group for a birthday party.
Thursday, July 01, 2004
Amplify, Hillary and more
After a dinner of cornflake chicken, Sharon and Morgan went to see The Stepford Wives. I can remember seeing the original in a theater in Marysville in 1975.
There was an article in the technology section of the Sacramento Bee about a new web service called Amplify. The site allows you to collect information from the Internet and create your own web page from a number of different sources. Using the service, I created a page of some information about Peja Stojakovic, including some pictures of the Greek model that he is marrying.
The Drudge report is quoting a top D.C. insider that Hillary Rodham Clinton will be picked as Kerry's VP.
There was an article in the technology section of the Sacramento Bee about a new web service called Amplify. The site allows you to collect information from the Internet and create your own web page from a number of different sources. Using the service, I created a page of some information about Peja Stojakovic, including some pictures of the Greek model that he is marrying.
The Drudge report is quoting a top D.C. insider that Hillary Rodham Clinton will be picked as Kerry's VP.
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