Blog it and they will come...

Noir et Blanc

2012-01-08T23:01:00.002-05:00

Like Riding a Bike...

2011-12-12T06:53:00.001-05:00

Ride a Bike, Save a Car!

2011-10-02T22:31:00.001-04:00

All Dressed Up and Somewhere To Go

2011-09-25T08:51:00.003-04:00

Fly Girls

2011-07-24T20:13:00.002-04:00

Me and My Shadow

2011-07-17T08:42:00.002-04:00

Raven Lunatic

2011-06-08T17:44:00.002-04:00

I Only Have Eyes For You

2011-04-04T18:12:00.028-04:00

Where's Waldo?

2011-03-03T18:48:00.002-05:00

The Mouse Pack

2011-01-09T19:34:00.002-05:00

Brotherly Love

2010-11-28T00:26:00.003-05:00

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you...

2010-08-26T17:53:00.003-04:00

Three Girls and a Shoe Store

2010-08-16T06:57:00.002-04:00

New Kid on the Deck

2010-07-12T23:57:00.004-04:00

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood - can you say "Boat Crew Qualified????"

2010-06-21T17:01:00.001-04:00

New Kid on the Dock

2010-05-30T22:34:00.002-04:00

New York State of Mind

2010-04-20T00:05:00.002-04:00

Find Me

2010-02-21T22:27:00.002-05:00

Makes Scents

2010-01-06T23:45:00.003-05:00

I used to wear the same fragrance all the time but then it got associated with things that were too painful to remember. Funny how that happens. I learned something new at the D&G counter. I have learned to mix two different scents which gave me something totally unique. Makes scents!

Two Heads Are Better Than None

2009-12-15T22:17:00.001-05:00

If you don't know us by now, you will never, never know us...

Scrabble Fun Day at MOSI

2009-11-28T16:46:00.002-05:00

Today our Scrabble Club was invited to be part of an exhibit at MOSI (Museum of Science and Industry). Expert players were observed while the rest of us played any visitor who wanted to play. It was a wonderful chance to introduce the game to new players and to encourage people who already play at home to consider tournament play. It gives a whole new meaning to bringing your A-game, don't you think? ;)

Our Big Fat Greek Vacation

2009-11-15T08:47:00.005-05:00

Curt and I just returned from a 10-day vacation to Athens, Greece. Curt ran the Athens Classic Marathon which covers the route Pheidippides ran from Marathon to Athens in 490 BC to deliver the message that the Athenians had been victorious in a battle with the Persians. The Athenians were prepared to burn the city down otherwise. I entered the 5K and here are our medals. The race finished in the Panatheniac Stadium which was the site of the first modern day Olympics held in 1896. We visited the highlights, ate great food, and met some wonderful people. Here are some of our photos: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2044757&id=1188092517&l=d94b80e317

Getting in the Spirit

2009-10-24T16:31:00.003-04:00

I found this in the neighborhood when I was taking a walk one night with Abby. There were six altogether. What???? You can't see the other three????

Words to the Wise

2009-10-14T21:58:00.002-04:00

One of my dearest friends, Tom, and I play five games of Scrabble every Wednesday night. Tom is a higher rated player than I but always enjoy the challenge. It doesn't happen very often but sometimes we each win two games and then it's a real rubber match. Tonight was one of those nights. And tonight I was on fire. I played FOUR bingos in this game - detains, trawled, elastics, and lingerer. At another point I had "relying" on my rack but I didn't have a place to put it down. Four bingos and Tom still won this game 388 to 363. Winning the game wasn't all he did. He also left me with a bingo on my rack when he played his last tile. Can anyone find the 7-letter word? It's very common. And for those of you who are wondering...there isn't a phony word on this board!

Wind Therapy

2009-10-05T23:14:00.003-04:00

This past weekend I went home with Cindy to Oneonta. We went to the OHS 35th high school reunion even though I didn't graduate from OHS. I would have if we hadn't moved so it was nice to see a lot of people I haven't seen in years. One of the events this weekend was a motorcyle run to promote motorcyle safety. It was organized by a childhood friend's wife to honor her son who was killed last year in a motorcyle accident. This was my ride and it was a great one.

I was so lucky that the owner of this bike didn't mind a passenger. We rode through northern Otsego County (which included Cooperstown and Otsego Lake) for at least two hours. I was in heaven. The hills were alive with color and it was an unbelievably gorgeous day. The owner of the bike told Cindy and me all about wind therapy. I lifted the shield on my helmet and let it all in. It was intoxicating, I swear...

Discovering the Cure

2009-09-24T15:46:00.002-04:00

I really did discover the Cure! Since Joe was born in 1982 and Tom was born in 1984 I missed out on a lot of great music in the 80s but I am making my way back. These are just a few of the "new" cds that I bought recently. My friend, Tom, uses an expression a lot. He says the songs or the music find him. Needless to say, these groups have been looking for me almost 30 years!

But what was lost is now found and I'm happy enjoying Lips Like Sugar, The Killing Moon, Pictures of You, etc.

Roses are Red

2009-09-16T06:45:00.004-04:00

Every Friday, Curt brings a fresh rose home for me. He has been doing this since he returned from a year in Iraq. It makes me feel a little like Marilyn Monroe with the exception that she was dead for the 20 years Joe DiMaggio had roses delivered three times a week to her gravesite.

I have decided a picture a day is the way to go instead of writing a blog. It's now easier to post all my pictures on FB since everyone who reads this is on there. I got the idea from a website called http://my.dietpower.com/features/daily_walk.php /.

The Day the Music Lived

2009-08-12T23:35:00.009-04:00

Vinyl is BIG in Austin - OMG, I couldn't believe it. Of course, they're all about their music. I thought I was exposed to a lot more music since my subscription to satellite radio but Austin's got nothing on me. I listened to more new music in my son's apartment over the weekend than I've heard in the past year. And most of it isn't even available on CD. :( I don't own a turntable so it's not likely I'll be able to hear these songs again. I was able to find a few to download on my IPod but it's just not the same.

Austin has a slogan: Austin is Weird. I'd like to say Austin is Wired. Just a little play on words if you recall Deja View. On every other corner is a coffee shop which means at every table there is someone sitting with their laptop. It's crazy. Well...it is a college town, after all. But I'm not a coffee drinker nor did I bring a laptop with me. Thank goodness I had my Kindle with me or I would have felt completely out of place every time Joe stopped at one of these places.

We had a great weekend listening to music, eating (Italian, Mexican, and Mediterranean), riding bikes, and going to Barton Springs. One of the last things we did before I left (and before I knew I would be stranded for one more night) was dance. Joe put his camera on the floor in video mode and I'm guessing our feet were recorded but I haven't

seen the video yet. No matter, it was a lot of fun.

And what's a weekend without Scrabble??? This is Joe's new board (courtesy Mom). Although the play is cut off, I played "ditz" in the lower right corner for 42 points on the triple. Joe came back with "quiz" for 32 points. It was a very close game. Kids...don't leave home without them!

Deja View

2009-07-26T07:55:00.012-04:00

When Cindy invited me to a family picnic Saturday I was sure I'd never been to this place. But once there, there was something hauntingly familiar about it - in another lifetime, I guess. This park is in downtown Tampa and I could actually see St Petersburg and the Trop across the bay. The park is also very close to the Gandy Bridge. I have become a lot more familiar with the waterways since joining the USCGA. I have done patrols that began in Harbour Island and included all three bridges - the Gandy, the Howard Frankland, and the Courtney Campbell Causeway.

The day started out like this. Cindy and I actually made it to the Howard Frankland on her wave runners until the weather forced us back.

And then from bright and sunny it all went black and next thing you know, we were all huddled under a shelter (pavillion) with things blowing at us and over us. We were sure we weren't in Kansas anymore. Luckily Cindy's nephew, Jake made in back just in time. :)

And I'm not sure what everybody else does after a tropical storm rips through but around here, we eat key lime pie!

Green, Green Grass of Home

2009-07-05T18:56:00.008-04:00

I just returned from a week's visit home to Syracuse and truly appreciated the things we know we can never replace from home. One of the first things I wanted to do was walk barefoot in the yard. There is nothing like the grass where I am from - it's soft, as it probably is in most parts of the country except Florida! And if you didn't grow up where your mom hung her sheets on the line outside to dry, I feel sorry for you. There is nothing like inhaling that fresh air while you sleep.

And then there's the comfort food - food that can never be replicated anywhere else in the world especially when it's your mom preparing the food. I realize most people would be unable to classify my mom's pepper salad as comfort food but it's one of my all time faves and she made it special just for me since she is unable to eat it anymore - it's mostly jalapenos, onions, and celery and I eat it with everything. I put it on my sandwiches, in my mom's sauce, and anytime I feel like jazzing up whatever I'm eating...

Here's a picture of the front of the house and it's fun for me to look at and remember all the times I climbed out of or into my bedroom window! That would be the dormer on the left. I used the fence in the backyard and the garage roof to get in and out. Most of the time I was breaking in when no one was home! A rebel WITH a cause - 'cause I didn't like staying with relatives when my parents were away...

It was a great week seeing my family and old friends. Did a lot of crosswords with my mom and especially enjoyed a Saturday puzzle with my dear friend, Jim, from high school. There was shopping, the casino, dinners out, hair cut and highlighted (omg - first time ever!). We found a great little Italian restaurant called Joey's because I was dying for NY Italian food. Here is my brother, Bill, Joanne, Mom, Harley, and me at the restaurant. The rest of my pictures can be viewed at: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2030296&id=1188092517&l=2f6d33dbd6

Coming up...Austin, TX with Joe, Curt's family picnic in Harrisburg, PA, the Nationals (Curt qualified this year) in Tuscaloosa, AL, Oneonta, and Greece for their annual marathon. Stay tuned...

Taco Ride 6/4/09

2009-06-08T22:29:00.015-04:00

Thursday nights are Taco Rides on the Wabash Trace Nature Trail. It is a 20-mile ride that begins in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and well...ends in Council Bluffs! Ten miles out and ten miles back. And you can't take a taco ride without margaritas so here is Kristi filling our water bottles.

You also can't take this ride without the benefit of a well-equipped bike and in Rob's own words..."Ohh... You must not know about my dedicated taco ride only steed! I have a bike that is outfitted with lights, and it has speakers mounted to the frame that I can run my ipod through. I also have a hard-side cooler attached to the back to keep beverages on ice, that can be opened on the fly even. Also has a beer holder and koozey mounted up high on the handle bars for easy access. I'm tellen ya this ride is waaaaay casual. All about the party!!! "

This is a scenic ride over the mountain and through the woods and if you don't believe me, please check out the elevation map by clicking on the link! One of Rob's good friends, Greg, and his girlfriend, Annetta, joined us on the ride. Next up is a picture of the trailhead. That's the back of Kristi and Annetta in the next pic.

Here I am in Margaritaville. It is a stop along the way where everyone just kinda hangs out and where Greg and Rob did their shots of tequila. And what's a taco ride without tequila????

I think Kristi and I are standing in a ditch or something! Geez, how tall are you, Rob????

After you ride ten miles you stop in the small town of Mineola for tacos, of course!!! And more drinks, of course!!! And to pose for pictures, of course!!! We started out around 6 I believe and headed back around midnight. The ride back was pretty uneventful. No pictures, didn't happen, right???? I will have a quick link to all the pictures from the trip real soon so y'all come back now, here? Now, wasn't that a party??? Rob guestimated 600 riders - wow!!

Orange you glad you graduated???

2009-05-21T16:35:00.012-04:00

Tommy graduated May 9 from Syracuse University with a Master's Degree in Social Studies - yeah!! Looks like he's known for a long time that's where he wanted to go to school! The first picture was taken in 1990 and the second picture was taken in 1987. Congratulations, T Bids!

Tommy just spent 4 days here in FL to go tarpon fishing, to go to the beach, to see a Rays game, and to play Scrabble with Mom, of course!! Click on "tarpon fishing" to see "The One That Got Away!" And here's a picture of Tommy at the game this past Sunday with his friend, Frank. This was the game where Coach Maddon made a mistake on the lineup card and the pitcher, Andy Sonnanstine, ending up batting - it was wild. According to the Tampa Tribune, "the last time a pitcher was in the lineup of an AL home game was Sept 23, 1976, when Ken Brett hit eighth for the White Sox against the Twins. To add another perspective, Sonnanstine was "the first AL pitcher to be in a starting lineup since Ford was president." And it was reported that he hit better than he pitched that day since Sonnanstine hit an RBI double in a five-run Rays fourth.

Maddon later quipped, "All the other pitchers want to start paying us off now to make the same mistake so they can hit also."

Three's Never a Crowd

2009-04-24T18:04:00.010-04:00

It's so much easier to post my pictures on FB now that writing a blog is somewhat of a chore but for the few good friends who don't have FB accounts, I will write a short one about last weekend. Please visit this link for the rest of the pictures. See? Too easy!!! Anywho...that's me, Tom, and Cindy in Little Italy last Friday night. We started out at the Mulberry St Bar (where I'm told some scenes from the Soprano's were filmed). We had dinner at La Nonna and then back to the bar for dancing and karaoke. The people singing weren't people who had too much too drink and thought they could sing. The people singing were unbelievably good. I actually asked one guy if he was leaving because I wanted to hear him do another song. And now Tom and I have a song. After we walked in, Summer Wind by Frank Sinatra started playing. And Tom sent me a great little clip of the bar - check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XrRkK7uefys.

Next up - me, Zack, and Cindy after the Yankee game on Saturday. And what a game. I'm not sure but a record may have been set for the longest half inning - 37 minutes!! That's how long it took the Cleveland Indians to score 14 runs on the Yanks. Cindy quipped that they should have invoked the 10 run rule like they do in Little League! That girl cracks me up. The Indians won the game 22-4. Zack wrote a great piece on the new stadium (opening weekend) and I felt like a celebrity when he posted this picture on his blog. But I like the picture right after this one on his blog of the two stadiums and the NYC skyline even more. I like it more especially since we were all together when he took it and I know that he had a piece of string attached to his camera so it wouldn't fall out of his hands as he slipped it through the bars at the subway station. Sometimes there's more to a picture than just the shot. Click on Zack's name for his story...

And, last but not least, the gentleman we met at Sunday's street festival. We met a lot of guys but Jonathan was so much fun. He stopped Cindy to see if she thought he looked good in this hat. "A hat defines a man," she told him. "It shows he has good taste, too." Before I knew it, she had attracted a small crowd and everyone wanted a hat!! Of course, Jonathan bought the hat and had to have his picture taken with us. He was visiting from Bawston.

We commented more than once that we don't understand how New Yorkers get such a bad reputation. We couldn't have had a better weekend and this is because everyone was so good to us. The gentleman who offered to help us purchase our subway tickets (we didn't ask him), the people who worked in the restaurants and the stores, and everyone on the street. It all has to do with YOUR attitude, if you ask me.

RanDumb Stuff

2009-03-27T21:25:00.009-04:00

Last week I played in a weekend Scrabble tournament in Port Richey. I took Friday off and got my dose of Vitamin D before the first games began at 6:30pm. This rack was for Blinky Blink who is my favorite engineer in the whole wide world. Ok, ok, so I don't know any other engineers but he'd still be my favorite. And who would have thought that engineers could be such good snugglers?! But I digress...

Back in February when I played in a one day tournament, my rating went from 908 to 992. Wow, 84 points!! I was seeded 17th in this tournament and finished 13th so my rating only went up 7 points to 999. I wanted to break 1000 so bad. Last time I was undefeated so I guess that accounts for the difference. Also, this tournament was an open tournament which meant I was playing all level players as opposed to those with similar ratings. My big play was "darkish" for 115 points - a double double. I almost won the prize for high play until someone played a word for 131 points. :(

Cindy Lou Who spent Saturday night with me in Port Richey and we went out dancing at the Crab Shack again where we are never at a loss for attention. It's a great little bar/restaurant on the Cootee River and the band plays outside. She waited for me to finish my games on Sunday morning and then we were off to Joe's for a boat ride on the river. Joe was happy to have Cindy along as the official waver. She was in her element. Born to be a queen on a float, that one is...

We left the river and entered the Gulf so Joe could show me the stilt houses. I had never seen one. There are about 10 or 11 of them and they are used for party houses on the weekends. He said they used to be real cheap but now sell for around $300K - that was not a typo. Amazing.

And last, but not least, the game board from my last game with Tom on Wednesday night. It was a great night because we played 4 close games each winning two. Then came the rubber match which doesn't happen very often. I took this game, too. And believe it or not, there are no phonies on this board. I'm never at a loss for words...

Music To My Ears

2009-03-18T22:40:00.007-04:00

We've all got them - songs that remind us of someone. I heard one last night and I'd been thinking about writing this blog for awhile so now's the time.

True/Spandau Ballet: My son, Joe - MTV was in its infancy when he was born in 1982 and I used to "dance" with him in my arms to this song. This HAS to be the mother/son song at his wedding.

Welcome to the Jungle/Guns 'N Roses: My son, Tom - I don't know why this reminds me of him but maybe it's because he liked it so much when he was younger. In fact, he still dresses up as Axel Rose every Halloween. And he's 25 - LOL.

Stanger on the Shore/Acker Bilk: My mom

Your Song/Elton John: KB

Carolina in My Mind/James Taylor: Jean Pleasure Hill

Judy's Turn to Cry/Leslie Gore: Judy Parker Windhausen

Sherry/Four Seasons: My uncle, John - I wonder if he can still hit those high notes. I still remember his portable stereo with the detachable speakers. I would be the keeper of his 45s until he returned from Vietnam.

Nights in White Satin/Moody Blues: Dizi

Don't Say You Don't Remember/Beverly Bremers: Debbie Cavallaro

What's Up/4 Non Blondes: Diana Taylor - if you've ever been in her Mini Cooper with the top down, you're never going to forget this song.

Lady in Red/Chris DeBurgh: Garnet

Glory Days/Bruce Springsteen: Donna Williams - not only did we go to one of his concerts together but we have a cassette tape (yeah, it's old!) from the NYS Fair when we did the karaoke thing before it was even called karaoke!

I Love You Always Forever/Donna Lewis: Al Anderson - omg, you should see his blue eyes. You have to listen to the song...

Freebird/Wynonna Judd: Carol Nelson - you had to be there, that's all I'm going to say.

Auld Lang Syne/Dan Fogelberg: Victoria Champ - all she had to do was tell me how much she liked this song, too.

It's All in the Game/Tommy Edwards: My brother, Bill: My mom used to play this a lot when we were growing up.

Save a Horse (Ride A Cowboy)/Big & Rich: Cyd - this was one of the songs she wanted on our "Life is a Highway" cd that we made for our trip to Apalachicola last year.

Hate Me/Blue October: Stacey Phillips - I can't explain.

Stairway to Heaven/Led Zeppelin - Jeff Widergren

Battle for Everything/Five for Fighting - Scott McManus (the whole cd)

The list goes on and on. Curt and I don't really have a song because he's not a real music guy but I will always think of him when I hear "Lawyers, Guns and Money" by Warren Zevon or "Ballad of the Green Berets" because those are two of his favorite songs. And anything by Alice in Chains, The Allman Brothers, or AC/DC is always going to remind me of my brother, Tim. If you're not on my list yet, don't worry. It's just that we haven't made a memory yet. As for my friend, Tom (NYC Tom, that is!), I'm sure by the time we leave Little Italy next month that something will always remind me of him!

Just Another Day in Paradise

2009-03-08T21:46:00.008-04:00

Between the West Point Founder's Day dinner on Friday night, a Yankees spring training game (where Cyd and I enjoyed front row seats on the first base line compliments of two fine young men on Dale Mabry) on Saturday, and going out with Cyd on the wave runners today, I think I had the most fun today even though I enjoyed my entire weekend. It was our test run to see if we could handle launching the wave runners and retrieving them at the dock when we were done. I think we can do it. And, if not, we'll just do what I would do if I ever get a flat tire on my bike - I'll wait for the first good looking guy who comes along to ask for help!

Works for us. We practiced on the Anclote River but now we're ready for the Gulf!

Keeping (A)Breast

2009-02-22T10:09:00.010-05:00

The Scrabble tournament I entered yesterday was a breast cancer fundraiser to benefit Susan G Komen for the Cure. It was a one-day tournament with 7 games. There were 10 players in my division and I was the number two seed. Statistically, I was only expected to win 4 games but I ended the day undefeated. Click on "statistically" to see what the playing field looks like. I went with Tom, a friend who comes to my home every Wednesday evening to play 5 "friendly" games. Tom also won his division (he played in the second division and I played in the fourth). But as soon as Tom received his prize money ($100) he immediately turned it over as a donation to Susan G Komen for the Cure in honor of his mother. It was a touching moment.

It was another day of seeing old friends and making new ones. There was also a "booby" prize for the best "boob" word. I really liked Nikki Scafa's "bustiest" play but, in the end, everyone's favorite was "survivor" played by Alexandra Gianikas. Tom and I headed to the nearby Mangrove Grill in Palmetto to have dinner and to celebrate our victories!

Gasparilla 2009

2009-02-08T09:20:00.017-05:00

Gasparilla is Tampa's Mardi Gras. I have lived here 7-1/2 years without ever having any desire to attend. I hate crowds. I avoid the mall at Christmas like the plague. I won't say I wasn't curious though as to what it was all about and I got my chance yesterday. My first boat patrol (as a trainee) with the US Coast Guard Auxiliary was for Gasparilla.

This is The Jose Gaspar enroute to where it will eventually dock at the Tampa Convention Center which is where our mission was located. We worked with the Tampa Bay Police to keep the area around the Convention Center secure and free of boats. Jose Gaspar was supposedly a pirate who operated in southwest Florida. Each year since 1904 the pirates "invade" the city. It's just a big party with lots of beads and drinking.

I think each party boat tries to outdo the next.

An estimated 350,00 people attended Gasparilla this year. The picture to the left shows people lining up for the arrival of the ship. After the ship arrives there is a parade on Bayshore with floats of costumed pirates. Our exit from the hoopla was an easy one. We motored away from Hillsborough Bay to the Alafia River and disembarked at Williams Park in Riverview. Mission Accomplished.

Note to self: Keith Anderson, where have you been all my life?!? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlEsRtKR-mk

LV FAST

2009-01-18T08:47:00.015-05:00

LV FAST. This was the plate on a Mustang I passed on my way home from the Lake Wales skydiving center. My inspiration comes from all over. Friends, family, strangers, license plates - you name it. My cousin, Randy, and his girlfriend, Carol, were visiting from NYC for an annual boogie. That's when people come from all over to skydive.

This is Randy preparing to land after a helicopter jump from about 4000 feet.

Randy and Carol learning a formation.

Above, the CASA (aircraft) being loaded and skydivers repacking their chutes to the left.

OMG - my first helicopter ride. I was sitting next to the pilot when my cousin snapped this "too close" photo. But I had to prove I did it otherwise I wouldn't have used the picture. The helicopter didn't have any doors and there were three skydivers cramped into a very small space behind me - Randy, Carol, and one other guy. The other guy was the last one to exit and it made the helicopter jerk as he left because of the unbalance. I screeched. The pilot laughed. He said he goes home every day to tell his wife he made women scream. Everyone's a comedian.

An aerial view of Lake Wales, FL taken from the open cockpit of the helicopter!

Randy standing on the skid and WAITING to have his picture taken before falling backwards. WOW - it was crazy. A good crazy though. If you double click on the picture, you will be able to see me in Randy's sunglasses. LV FAST.

Car Tunes

2009-01-15T16:42:00.004-05:00

Don't you just love it??? The name of the business that installed my satellite radio is Car Tunes. Too clever. Anyway, the first cut is the deepest (my car tunes!). First Jason popped out the tailight to install the antenna which required a little hole for the wire. That wasn't too bad. I didn't start to freak out until he disassembled the front of the car - yikes!!! So now I am all hooked up in the house, on my computer, and my car for satellite. I wouldn't leave home without it. Jason is located almost at the intersection of 60 and Lithia Pinecrest and I highly recommend his services. My Ipod even works with this setup!!

When I wanted to put the bike rack on the back of the corvette, I relied on computer articles describing how it was done. I am writing this blog to let anyone know that wants satellite radio in their corvette (but doesn't want the unsightly antenna on the outside) that it can be put on the inside. Plus, who needs to advertise with an outside antenna that they've got a satellite radio on the inside? Jason is awesome!!!

Canoe Redux Etc

2009-01-09T21:50:00.013-05:00

We're only on day nine of the new year but already I've been canoeing, played in a 3-day Scrabble tournament, and attended opening night of a play at Jobsite Theater.

We started out the new year exactly as we did last year by canoeing down the Hillsborough River. We didn't see any gators this time but that's not to say that wild life didn't exist (ahem). In fact, a woman in red heels with red hair sitting in a red canoe is a very common sight on this river.

Next stop - Port Richey, FL. I roomed with my friend, Sue, from Wisconsin. Cindy and I got together Saturday for an evening at the Crab Shack dancing the night away. This is supposed to be the largest tiki bar in the south and it really is a cool place. Oh, yeah, and I played 24 games of Scrabble, too! Here's a couple of pictures of the higher level players and one of their boards since I have nothing impressive of my own to share!

And last, but not least, Tom and I before we left for the theater last night. I bought Tom the book with the play in it for Christmas (and one for myself) so that we might enjoy it more and we did. The play, "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" was written by Steve Martin (yes, the comedian) and took place around 1904 at a bar in Paris. Picasso meets Einstein with a few more surprises. It was very entertaining. Can't wait for MY encore...

Happy New Year!!!!

2009-01-01T00:34:00.000-05:00

Same Old Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg
Met my old lover in the grocery storeThe snow was falling Christmas EveI stole behind her in the frozen foodsAnd I touched her on the sleeve
She didn't recognize the face at firstBut then her eyes flew open wideShe went to hug me and she spilled her purseAnd we laughed until we cried
We took her groceries to the checkout standThe food was totaled up and baggedWe stood there lost in our embarrassmentAs the conversation dragged
We went to have ourselves a drink or twoBut couldn't find an open barWe bought a six pack at the liquor storeAnd we drank it in her car
CHORUS:We drank a toast to innocenceWe drank a toast to nowWe tried to reach beyond the emptinessBut neither one knew how
She said she'd married her an architectWho kept her warm and safe and dryShe would've liked to said she loved the manBut she didn't like to lie
I said the years had been a friend to herAnd that her eyes were still as blueBut in those eyes I wasn't sure if ISaw doubt or gratitude
She said she saw me in the record storeAnd that I must be doing wellI said the audience was heavenlyBut the traveling was hell
CHORUS
We drank a toast to innocenceWe drank a toast to timeLiving in our eloquenceAnother auld lang syne
The beer was empty and our tongues were tiredAnd running out of things to sayShe gave a kiss to me as I got outAnd I watched her drive away
Just for a moment I was back at schoolAnd felt that old familiar painAnd as I turned to make my way back homeThe snow turned into rain

Name That Movie!!!

2008-12-30T12:23:00.005-05:00

Christmas Day 2008!

Fun Is My Revenge Against Mortality

2008-12-21T18:10:00.010-05:00

It's been an interesting week. Eli (a friend from college) got here from NC on Tuesday and stayed through Friday. We stayed up late every night drinking wine and reminiscing but found time to play in between. We saw a foreign film at the Tampa Theatre called "A Girl Cut in Two." It was a French film with English subtitles. But the most fun I had was taking Wednesday off from work and going to Shoot Straight with him. Shoot Straight is an indoor firing range. It wasn't the first time Eli took me to a firing range but the last time was many years ago. We met in the mid 90s when we were both students at Fayetteville State University. Eli is retired Air Force and also a graduate of the Air Force Academy. He is now a practicing CPA in NC. Anyway, we were trying to decide if I had more pairs of shoes than he had guns. He won. Now that's a LOT of guns!! But pictured here are three that he brought for me to shoot this time. A .22, a .38, and a 9mm. I did real well with the .22 and the target proves it but I could barely make the target with the 9mm. The .38 wasn't too bad either.

Before I forget, the title of this blog is a quote by Dustin Hoffman in today's paper. It's perfect. It's the way I live my life. And I discovered a couple of other things today, too. I didn't know until Diana and I were on our way home from Caladesi Island on the ferry that today was the first day of winter! Four days from Christmas, first day of winter, and we went to the beach. Ya gotta love Florida. And Diana wore the best t-shirt I have ever seen. Up until this point I had another favorite. It was an upside down Nike swoosh and it read "Just Done It." I never thought you could beat that. But here's what she wore! Awesome...

So the conversation is centered a lot of times on music because we listen to it all the way over to the beach and back. Diana has an impressive collection of music. I told her I just bought a James Morrison cd (Nothing Ever Hurt Like You) and she tells me she loves James Morrison. Admittedly, even with all her music, I was surprised she knew who it was. I even made sure she wasn't confusing him with Jim Morrison. Nope. She even saw James Morrison in concert last year. He opened, along with Ben Folds, for John Mayer at a concert in the Ford Amphitheater. Turns out, I was there, too!!!!!

Yep, that's the other thing I learned today. I've seen James Morrison in concert. I discovered him recently on satellite radio and never knew I saw him in person. Too funny.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i74Y-5WKFsA

We're Gonna Shop Around the Clock Tonight!

2008-12-15T22:19:00.013-05:00

Ok, for starters, Cindy and I got to the outlet mall at Ellenton almost 3 hours after it opened. It was close to noon and it opened at 9. Holiday hours, I tell ya. Who knew? Needless to say, there was no parking to be found. But leave it to us - where there's a will, there's a way. Or as someone we know is fond of saying, where there's a will, I hope I'm in it! Anyway...it was no big deal. We simply uprooted the tree to make room for the vet. Do pictures lie?

Heeeeeeerrrrrrreeee's Cindy getting into the spirit. Actually, I just bought new hats for us tonight - they're red with black fur trim and they are hawt! And this was taken right after we met the man from Turkey. We now now how to say Red Corvette and Burgandy Corvette in Turkish. And this was all before we met the guy from Germany...

We ended the day at a yacht basin of sorts in Palmetto. Mangrove Grill is nestled on the Manatee River at the gorgeous Riviera Dunes Marina Resort.

Corvette Ranch

2008-12-07T21:59:00.010-05:00

Saturday was the Army/Navy game but more that than, it was a chance to get together with friends and just hang out. We met up with Marc and Diana along with some others from Marc's year group. This year's "tailgate" was held at the Green Iguana in downtown Tampa. Normally we camp out in the game room at Raymond James Stadium but the ACC Championship game was being played that afternoon. The Gators also played Alabama later in the day so the fact that Navy beat Army 34-0 was hardly news. In fact in appeared on the back page of the sports page today.

2008 Vet drove over from Okeechobee to rendezvous with 1996 and 2003 Vets. Mike let Cindy drive on the way over and I drove back. Vet, you know, like in (Co)Vet!

That's right, Cid, just push the button to start. 2008 Vet doesn't take keys!

You're going to park where?????

Thanksgiving Blues

2008-11-30T13:47:00.012-05:00

When Tom and Joe were little, their dad used to joke that they'd be the only two kids who went away to college that couldn't wait to get home to their dad's home cooking. Funny. But true. So just to be sure nothing went wrong on T'giving Day, I hired Greg and Michelle, from Cooks and Company. They prepared a fabulous meal for Curt, myself, Tom, Cindy, Marc and Diana. We had cannellini bean crostini and shrimp for hor d'oeurvres followed by the following for dinner: whole roasted buttered turkey with dijon and fresh sage, rosemary, and thyme; traditional American turkey gravy; orange, honey, and ginger cranberry sauce; roasted red garlic smashed potatoes with fennel and creme fraiche; vanilla bean scented sweet potatoes; currant, red delicious apple, and walnut toasted dressing; blistered green beans with brown butter and slivered almonds, corn and edamame hash; and jalapeno and honey corn muffins. There was pumpkin pie with ginger creme angalise for dessert. Just like the First Thanksgiving. At this house anyway seeing that the dining room table has never seen anything but Scrabble boards. I didn't have any of the turkey but Tom said it was the best turkey he's ever had. Wow. All well worth it.

We went to the firing range on Friday and yoga on Saturday morning. We also found a copy of "The Ron Clark Story" to watch with Tom before he left. He just finished his student teaching and this is a true story about a teacher in NYC. It is very inspirational. Two more classes in the spring and he graduates with his Masters in Social Studies from Syracuse University. I also learned the difference between history and social studies while he was here. It was an eye opener!

Well, it's a great day to be holed up in the house. I love rainy days and Sundays! I finished the fourth book in the Twilight series this morning and now I'm thinking about writing my Christmas cards. I'm blue though because Curt and Tommy left on the same day. All the fun and festivities for a few days and then I find myself all alone. I even had to learn how to use the tv before they left. Swear. AND the dvd player. It takes three remotes for crying out loud - not for the faint-hearted, I tell ya...

What's In a Name?

2008-11-14T18:17:00.012-05:00

Picture on the left (years ago). Tom (on the right) in Little Italy Friday night with a friend.

I already have a son, a cousin, an uncle, and a very good friend named Tom in my life. Was there room for one more? Oh yeah. Remember this Tom? Click on the link if you don't. I met Tom last year on my way home. I had the aisle seat (have to have the aisle seat). He had the window seat. There were three seats across on each side of the plane. Wouldn't you know - the guy in the middle has long legs, is inebriated, and wants to switch seats with me. Hmmm...I'm not just a little claustrophobic and that's how sitting in the middle feels to me. I look over at Tom (whom I don't know yet) and he's reading the sports section of one of those NY papers! I've just started reading Zack Hample's new book "Watching Baseball Smarter" and it doesn't take more than a millisecond to know I'm moving over. I'm stressed out that Zack says "In order to consider yourself a baseball fan, you must have an opinion on the designated hitter; you either love that it creates more offense by replacing weak-hitting pitchers with full-time sluggers or you hate that it eliminates the late-inning strategy of dealing with those pitchers." I'm stressed out because I love baseball but maybe I'm not a baseball fan because I don't have an opinion? So I ask my new seat mate what he thinks. You know, the ice breaker! I feel terrible that I don't remember what he said but somehow we seque into music! Before this flight was over, I had his email address and he was going to send me cd's that he made.

Ok, a mini solicited bio: I'll give you this first and if you need more let me know. This is a general list of what I like and have; 750 cd's, 7200 songs on my iPod.

Next: Born, raised and still residing on Long Island. My dad passed away when I was seven, but I still remember the day he brought that piano home for my mom. I was six and can remember just staring and watching her play. Couldn't read music, but sing a few bars and the song would be figured out in no time.

My parents listened to Sinatra, Dino and Jimmy Roselli among many others. Or as Billy Crystal would say in Analyze This, "I like all the Italian singers." I actually am going to see Tony Bennett for the first time in a few weeks. To me, that's almost like seeing The Beatles.

My brother was/is so big into The Beatles that I don't think I knew any other music existed until I was about 15. I started hanging out with a few guys (who are still my best friends) and I heard Aerosmith, CSN&Y, Marshall Tucker, Pink Floyd, Yes and thought, "Wow! Some pretty cool stuff!"

It's always cool to discover a new band or song. Many times I feel like the songs find me instead of me finding them, if that makes any sense. So many things come and go throughout our lifetime: family, friends, jobs, relationships. But music has been and always will be something that can never be removed. It'll always be in my heart.

Ok, now for some of his faves:

1) Best I Ever Had-Vertical Horizon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmZdpkh14_Q

2) Don't Wait Too Long-Madeleine Peyroux http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgvguMwkqtk
3) The Day Brings-Brad http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEvdqE2WQGo
4) One Flight Down-Norah Jones http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2_emXJosrI
5) Hard Time-Ron Sexsmith http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peVIjSjQbPc
6) Say What You Want-Rosie Thomas
7) Strange Condition-Pete Yorn http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htMkQnhYZTQ
8) I Won't Blame You-Pilot Speed9 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQpK7ynBBRk

9)Life is a Losing Game - Amy Winehouse http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XxXVOiaRKk

10)Your Love is Forever - George Harrison http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV63-9Y8dT4

11) Always on Your Side - Sheryl Crow/Sting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FAD3GmlB1c can't believe I forgot about this one.......love the end when he hugs her and kisses her forehead ...and then I comment how incredible it is that he picks up on this and he adds: Yeah, that ending just kinda gets me........Like in the Wizard of Oz, towards the end when Dorothy is saying goodbye to everyone and she says to the Scarecrow, "I think I'm gonna miss you most of all." WOW

12) If I Only Had the Words (To Tell You) - Billy Joel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vW0ATkPZWCM

From an email when Tom sent me Number 5: Hey Lin......a song that recently found me..........soooo cool. Did he just call me Lin? I love it...

Hey, if you can find a guy who sends you music because either he loves it himself, he knows you will love it, or it makes him think of you, you've got it made. Now all I need is a guy who will read to me! Happy Hunting, girls...

P.S. If you like Pete Yorn's "Strange Condition," I think you will love "Just Another Girl." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PY0mC8GkFx0

My Circle, Chad

2008-11-08T12:08:00.008-05:00

Please note the awesome hula hoop Cindy gave me for my birthday or none of this makes sense! I do consider myself THEE card queen but my friends outdo me all the time.

I have to tell you about a few of them because they are a riot. Inside the Scrabble card reads "Shh...give me a second..I know I can make something out of this."

Outside: For your birthday, I was going to sign you up for one of those "wine of the month" clubs. Inside: But then I thought, one bottle of wine for a whole month? Riiiiiiiiiiiight.

Custom made vampire - Greetings, Linda. I'm toasting your birthday with a glass of vintage Grizzly Bear...Lovely! (Oh, Edward, bite me!)

Liz was driving home from the mall when she saw an older woman walking. Liz asked if she wanted a lift and the old woman said "Sure," and got in. She sat silently until she noticed a bag on the seat. The old woman asked, "What's in the bag?" Liz said, "A bottle of wine. I got it for my husband." The woman sat back, was silent for a moment, then speaking the wisdom of her years, replied..."...good trade."

Inside the one with the two little girls with raincoats - Who needs the sun when there's you? Aww....And the one that's in the shape of a wine bottle with my birth year on it???? Are you in my circle? Or not?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCU1JYmGxcA

CB, U R an FeMAN!

2008-11-03T18:29:00.007-05:00

Curt finished the 2.4 miles swim in 1:25:49, the 112-mile bike ride in 5:55:37, and the 26.2 run in 5:10:53 for an overall time of 12:54:08 which includes time in the transition areas. The men's winner finished in 8:07:59 and the women's winner finished in 9:07:48 - wow!!! And I'm married to an Ironman!!!!

RUSH (and I"m not talking about the band)

2008-10-26T11:25:00.012-04:00

Team up with your friends and go on a galaxy-wide, loot-flowing, backstab-filled rampage against common space folk, the monolithic Empire and other Facebook space raiders!(WARNING: this application contains strong language, fantasy violence, and simulated gambling)

This is a game on Facebook. This is a game I got invited to join back in August. Diana recruited me to be part of her crew. I didn't have time or interest. She reminded me this morning that I sent her a message to go ahead and use me in her crew but that I wasn't going to be a player. Space Raiders to her was like Scrabble to me. Then she spent an afternoon here showing me how to battle. I was somewhat hooked. I played around with it a little after she left. I started playing with it a little more after that. My crew grew and so did my bank account. I was hooked. And then it happened. It took me by surprise. I knew that you felt it, too. By the look in your eyes. This magic moment.

Some greedy creep out there in cyberspace stole one of my longstanding crewmembers. Let's call the greedy creep "13" because that is actually his "name." I bought my crewmember back. "13" had the gall to take him away from me again. I left a message on his wall since his profile indicated that stealing his crew is a punishable act. Ah, double standard. That's what I told him. So what does this idiot do? He buys me. I'm in Diana's crew. Diana, as in "The Redhead of Death" Diana. Bad idea, wrong move. Guy didn't know what hit him, probably still doesn't. ROD bought me back and I am now worth $104,147. That pales in comparison to ROD's $1,638,020 worth and her crew of 171. War. The Alliance.

So, you must be wondering - what does this have in common with a triathlon? Well...Curt woke me up at 4:30 yesterday to get ready to leave for Ft DeSoto. He entered us again as a relay team where he would do the swim and the run. I would be doing the 10.5 mile bike. It was too early to put my contacts in so I told him I was going to check my email first and then I could get going. What I found was so exhiliarating that I actually got pumped up for the race and the adrenaline started flowing. Everyone had answered ROD's call and they were operating as a team. The bad guys were losing and the good guys were having a field day. It was democracy at its best. It was a RUSH to see what was happening. I've always said smart is sexy but what about power? It was a complete turn on, I tell ya.

So, anyway, I have no pictures before or during the race because it was raining. I had a good ride because it was a straight out and back route instead of winding myself through a town like the last one in Tarpon Springs. I averaged near 15mph for 10.5 miles and it was a great day. Curt thinks this is how all families should spend their time together - by (tri)ing! Btw, I'm not 52 yet - they have to put your age this year on your calf no matter how old you are now. The "R" is for relay.

Scrabble Humor

2008-10-23T18:50:00.005-04:00

Boston Massacre

2008-10-19T13:09:00.010-04:00

Well, Boston Massacre is a bit strong to describe the Rays loss to the Sox last night. But it wasn't a tea party either. I was able to attend my first playoff game EVER. It was a dream come true. And I was willing to shell out the extra bucks ($105 over face value) just because I was so sure the Rays would be clinching the ALCS title on their own turf. It didn't happen so the series is tied and game 7 will be played at the Trop tonight. It should be an exciting game. I had to laugh when Curt brought to my attention the headline of yesterday's paper versus today's headline. We went from pretty much "no big deal" to "hey, we might not make it, after all." I heard more than one person say they went to bed Thursday night, myself included, thinking there was no way we were going to lose game 5 only to wake up and find out that we had.

But yesterday started out a lot better than it ended. I officially became a member of US Coast Guard Auxiliary Tuesday night when I was sworn in during their monthly meeting. Twice a month, on Saturdays from 10-2, our Flotilla performs vessel safety checks at Williams Park in Riverview - a popular launching site on the Alafia River (about 20 mintues from home). I decided to check it out and also to hook up with my friend, Joe, from high school. Joe is a coxswain and owns two boats used as facilities (i.e. used for patrols). I am extremely fortunate to be under his guidance. I don't have my uniforms yet but I did buy the boots I'll need for boat crew. Are they hawt or wawt??? Within the next couple of weeks I should be out on the water as a trainee!

I also want to thank all of my friends for their great taste in music, especially Diana. Friday night I bought 4 new cds - Sass Jordan (Racine - title) , 4 Non Blondes, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and Dido (Here With Me, Take My Hand - songs). I also finished "Twilight" this weekend and moved on to the second book in the series called, "New Moon." Oh, how I want my own vampire...

Bandwagons

2008-10-12T08:10:00.014-04:00

I never jump on bandwagons. Not my style. I never read the Harry Potter series. Just not into it. Never understood the hoopla. But then came Edward. If you're wondering what rock I crawled out from under, please reread my first sentence. I just got sucked in, well like, like blood to a vampire. I couldn't sleep this morning so I got up to be with Edward, again. Donna, Diana, Charlene, Carol? Would you like to jump on? I've got the reins and I'm ready to lead the way. I'm unashamedly wanting more and more of Edward. By the way, I'm talking about a book that came out in 2005 called "Twilight." The movie premieres November 21. Its sequels are "New Moon," "Eclipse," and "Breaking Dawn." To read more about this captivating series, check out the author's website by clicking on her name, Stephenie Meyer.

Rayhawks!

2008-10-02T22:39:00.004-04:00

It began with the players when they started winning more and more games. Now that the Tampa Rays have made the playoffs, fans are sporting their own versions of mohawks and Tom is a BIG fan. Today we won game 1 of the American League Division Series against the White Sox (6-4).

Tom and I played Scrabble last night. Our usual 5 games. Tom won the first four - nothing unusual about that. And it's not that I won the 5th game that makes this so interesting - it's just the game itself.

Tom's first play (a bingo) was "duocote." I looked at him. He looked at me. And then I checked my rack to see if I could use these letters even if it was a phony. Tom got 74 points for "duocote" but I could score 40 with "qoph" as a parallel play so I decided to let his word stay on the board. I told him either the word was good or he was the world's best poker player and if that was the case, he needed to switch games. Then he played "wis" which I challenged and lost. I thought I knew my threes. It just looked funny. The joke was on me. His next play was "gripe" but I came back with my first bingo - evaders. We went back and forth until I put down another bingo - cresting. I only won by 4 points. And since I hadn't challenged "duocote" we looked it up after the game. As you can tell by the "Word Judge" the play was not acceptable. Duocote? A second coat of paint?????

MDot Florida

2008-09-30T14:13:00.008-04:00

Oh my gosh, Ironman Florida is exactly one month away!!!! Curt took the past week off for longer training periods. In between eating and sleeping, he swam 1200 meters (about 7.4 miles), biked 304 miles, and ran 61 miles! And for the uninitiated, look at the "M" in the "Ironman" banner above. The dot is for the "I" in Ironman. A lot of athletes will get an MDot tattoo after they complete their first Ironman. So if you ever see one you'll know what it is and not confuse it for the Minnesota basketball team or something. :)

We have found a gorgeous place right on the beach in Panama City to share with Marc and Diana. Click on this link to see our place AND our view!. It is within walking distance to the race. Marc finished his first Ironman this year in June at Coer d'Alene. They know several people competing so they are going just to watch and cheer everyone on. Can you say cowbell? We also have room for another competitor, John, and his wife. John works with Curt.

So, I'm not sure why but Curt entered us as another relay team in the Suncoast Triathlon on October 25 - a week before his Ironman competition. OMG! Can you say break a leg? He'll do the swim and run again while I do the bike. It's going to be an experience because this will be my first time on the road with clip-in pedals. I've only been using them for a couple of months now but I never ride on the road. So new bike shoes but In These Shoes, I don't think so...

I'm headed to NY on Friday and staying through Monday. If anyone sees a 2003 anniversary red corvette on the road with a bike rack, give me a ring on my cell phone!

Have Kayak, Will Travel

2008-09-28T17:57:00.013-04:00

The temperatures are dropping in Tampa (yeah, we're in the 80s now!) and fall is in the air. You might think the 90s is perfect beach weather but it's hard to say. Yesterday was one of the most perfect days I've ever spent at the beach. Diana and I were going to Caladesi Island because, well, because, we're beach snobs. It's $9.00 to take the ferry but worth every penny when you consider how pristine the beach is and how the price of the ferry keeps most people away. Since Honeymoon Island is where the ferry leaves from and you can go there for free, there will always be crowds at Honeymoon. Unfortunately, our timing was off and when we got there at 2, the ferry was at capacity and the next ferry wasn't leaving until 3. What to do. An hour is an awfully long time to wait so we decided, grudgingly, to go to Honeymoon Island. We ate our lunch there and I couldn't help remark, as I often do when all seems just right with the world, "I wonder what the poor people are doing." Diana deadpanned to just look over my shoulder. OMG. There were so many people there (too many) and the beach was full of rocks, even in the water. We were outta there. We decided to rent a kayak and paddle over to Caladesi but the funniest part was that the 3pm ferry crossed us on our way! So here's the view from land before we head out. And next is the view from Caladesi from the point where we launched. We spent the afternoon shelling and reinacting the SNL skit with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler until we had totally cracked each other up.

There are always men waiting for us where ever we go. Okay, okay, it's the owner and an employee but we agreed to take a picture of them with their website on the sign. I didn't pose them - they came up with that all on their own!! And, yes, we did let the sun go down on us in the Gulf of Mexico at 7:50pm last night.

Birthday Tri, TP, and a Plate of Potatoes

2008-09-21T19:38:00.016-04:00

For the past three years, Curt has done the Sand Key Triathlon which falls either right on or around his birthday. He has placed 4th, 2nd, and 3rd in his division. Diana and I helped provided kayak support on a goregous morning today in the Gulf of Mexico while Marc was on the sidelines providing athlete support (Go, Tracy!!). Curt's arch nemesis, Tracy Parker, was on hand and in fine form. She always gets in before Curt. She has been ranked by Athlinks.com as the one rival who beats him the most and the most convincingly. This drives him wild. It's always only by a few minutes (and she's 10 years younger) but nobody likes getting chicked (overtaken by a girl). Here's her profile picture from Athlinks.com.

Next is a picture of one of the two bridges the racers ride over in Clearwater. You will have to double click the image for a closer look because I took it at quite a distance.

The next picture is of me with Sarah Palin cropped out. Now I know everyone else is cropping her in but I can't have that gun-toting beauty queen stealing all my attention. No MLFs on my blog!

Here's Curt running after Tracy has already gone by! Unfortunately my camera setting is usually on "auto" so action shots don't come out very clear.

This year's cake was pretty funny. It showed a biker down after a squirrel got caught in the spokes. You can't really tell from the picture but that little brown spot to the right of the biker's head is the squirrel's head. His body is scattered across the cake. I wonder whose nutty idea that was!!

And then it was out to breakfast at a little Italian place in Clearwater. I'm notta kidding. It's da kinda place where da waiters get slapped around if they aren't providing a gooda service. Anyhow, Curt didn't want his potatoes...

Lightning Twice

2008-09-18T21:48:00.005-04:00

This post is about a friend I made when I started blogging. Marc told me I should do an internet search for Scrabble players as a way of looking for something in common with someone and that's how I found Zack Hample. He is a most amazing guy even before he did what he just did! Please click on his name to read the post when I first met him.

In two consecutive nights at Yankee games this week, Zack caught two home run balls. You HAVE to watch this video: http://www.zackhample.com/baseball_collection/homers/johnny_damon.mpg. Be sure to listen to the commentators. They're talking about this play being better than the play the night before. And they're talking about Zack's play - not Johnny Damon's play!! He is an internet sensation, I tell ya...

And if you're still interested in learning more about this incredible guy, check out: http://snaggingbaseballs.mlblogs.com/

I'm in the Coast Guard (Auxiliary) Now, I'm not behind the plow...

2008-09-15T21:33:00.008-04:00

It all started this summer when my brother, Tim, told me that I would need a certificate stating I took an 8-hour boating safety course. It is required in NYS in order to operate a PWC (personal water craft). So I took the course. Little did I realize how interested I would be. The course was taught by the Coast Guard Auxiliary and, of course, they take a moment or two to recruit new members. They also offered a more in-depth course this fall which I am currently taking. AND I enrolled on Saturday to become a member. The Coast Guard, as well as the Coast Guard Auxiliary fall under the Department of Homeland Security. There are many opportunities in the USCG Auxiliary and I chose patrols. When we first moved to Tampa in 2001 and took our first cruise, I immediately applied to Carnival for an accounting position. I loved being out to sea.

So here I am being fingerprinted. The FBI will do a background check. It's the real deal. I will have to purchase uniforms. In order to qualify for the boat crew, I have to complete 4 online courses and I finished my first one over the weekend (see certificate). Questions?

Culture Club

2008-09-11T22:42:00.007-04:00

Tonight was the season premiere of "Blackbird" at Jobsite Theater. Not only was it the opening of the play but it was the opening of Jobsite's 10th season. AND I am a season ticket holder along with my good friend, Tom, who also doubles as my Scrabble partner. What I love about this venue is that it is small, cozy, and affordable! The configuration of the stage determines how many seats in the house. Tonight there were 115 seats. This playhouse is a jewel. We bought season tickets for 117.60 (six shows). What a bargain.

"Blackbird" was written by David Harrower who hails from Scotland. The play is loosely based on a true story about a former US Marine who abducted a 12-year-old British girl in 2003. He spent four and a half years in jail before being deported back to the USA and sentenced to another jail term in April of this year. The Marine was 32 years old at the time. The play takes a further step. The Marine is out of jail now and the girl visits him 15 years later. I don't want to provide any spoilers so suffice it to say the play was excellent as was the talent. I had expressed my hesitancy to see all the plays on opening night thinking that they wouldn't have all the kinks worked out. I couldn't have been more wrong.

Tom and I are looking forward to "The History of the Devil" by Clive Barker (Oct 30-Nov 16), "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" by Steve Martin (Jan 8-25), "The Leiutenant of Inishmore" by Martin McDonagh (Mar19-Apr 5), "Rabbit Hole" by David Lindsay Abzire (June 4-21), and Pericles (book by Niel Gobioff & Shawn Paonessa) showing Aug 6-23. Tonight's performance runs through Sept 28.

I wore all black for tonight's performance. I can't wait to shop for "The History of the Devil!" We discussed the title of the play on the way home. Since Tom knew the lyrics to "Blackbird" by the Beatles, it all started to make sense. See if you don't agree...

Blackbird singing in the dead of night

Take these broken wings and learn to fly

All your life you were only waiting for this moment to arise

Blackbird singing in the dead of night

Take these sunken eyes and learn to see

All your life you were only waiting for this moment to be free

Blackbird fly Blackbird fly into the light of the dark black night

Top, pants, and shoes are all from Deborah Kent's. Everybody gets a plug tonight!

Roller Coasters, Tigers, and Birds - Oh My!

2008-08-31T10:55:00.018-04:00

Thank you Anheuser-Busch. Throughout 2008, members of the military and as many as three direct dependents may enter any one of Anheuser-Busch's Sea World, Busch Gardens or Sesame Place parks with a single-day complimentary admission. I had never been to Busch Gardens in the 7 years we have lived here. It was close to living in NYS for 35 years and not visiting the Empire State Building. Well, almost.

So, I don't do roller coasters but it turns out I love watching others ride them and listening to them scream! Check out Sheikra - Busch Gardens latest addition. That is a true 90 degree drop. Sheikra gets its name from an African hawk (shikra) that dives straight down for its prey.

Out of all the animals we saw, the white tiger was my favorite. If only he had been a little more animated. The chimpanzees were entertaining but not quite as picturesque.

Interacting with the birds, however, was the best part of our day. You can pick up cups of nectar and the birds will flock to you. Talk about eating right out of your hand!

This picture wasn't cropped and I love it for two reasons. That little bird was just pecking away at my cap and now you can really see my green eyes!

I've been listening to Hinder's "Extreme Behavior" a lot lately. I haven't listened to a cd over and over like this since Five for Fighting's "The Battle for Everything." In particular, I'm very fond of "Better than Me."

Bikin' Down a Dream

2008-08-17T13:31:00.014-04:00

Ok, so Tom Petty sings runnin' down a dream but this is my blog, not Tom's. On August 9 Curt entered us in the 20th annual Tarpon Springs Rotary Sprint Triathlon as a relay team. I was so excited that he would include me. No pressure - it was all just for fun and I had a blast. Curt did the quarter mile swim in 8.24.1 and ran to the transition area where I had to wait for him to put the timing chip on my leg before I could even unrack my bike. The first picture is before the race even started.

I was up next for the 10.5 bike ride. I did my portion in 42.54.2 for an average of 4.05/m or, in other words, 15 mph. Not great but respectable. I like respectable. My performance at this year's Scrabble tournament wasn't respectable. :( As I headed out the causeway from Ft Howard Park in Tarpon Springs, I passed Marc and Diana. It's exciting to see people you know and having them cheer you. It propels you even though I was sailing at over 20mph at the time with a strong tailwind. As I rode through town, I passed Carl and Cindy and I pushed myself a little harder then, too. You do that until they can no longer see you - just kidding. I "lifted" this print off the official website.

Most relay teams have three people but Curt did the swim AND the run so he was waiting for me in the transition area as my wobbly legs carried me in. You have to stop your bike at the dismount line, get off, and run your bike in. My legs felt like jelly. Curt did the 3 mile run in 22.21 for a total time of 1.13.39 (which includes transition times). Last year he did this whole race in less than an hour.

After the race we all went out breakfast in Tarpon Springs at a place called Rodie's. Carl and Cindy, Marc and Diana, and Eric and Jayne (friends who live in Tarpon) joined us.

I didn't take the race seriously but there was something about being passed out there that you find a little unnerving. It's not like when the pack passes you at Flatwoods. That's different because they're riding and not racing. And then there was something totally energizing about passing someone else. All I'm saying is that I went out and bought new pedals and new shoes for my bike. I now have clip-in pedals. The guys at the bike shop said I'll ride faster - lol, we'll see...

I almost forgot - I've been listening to David Gray's White Ladder recently. It's not new - just new to me. I'm crazy about "Please Forgive Me." And I corrected your running time, Curt!

Take My Word For It

2008-08-09T17:03:00.013-04:00

Yes, take my word for it. I did not play well at this year's tournament. I still had a good time because I got to see people I've met from around the country and I made several new acquantainces. The first person I reconnected with was my friend, Paul, from NYC. I stayed with Paul during the NYC tournament last summer. He found me at the pool trying to catch some sun after registration. Paul doesn't "do sun." We actually found a spot where he could sit in the shade while I was in the sun and we were side by side. Paul also treated me to dinner at one of Emeril's restaurants located at the hotel. Tom, my Scrabble partner, along with his partner, Andrew, also treated me to dinner one night, too. They took me to a Vietnamese restaurant for another wonderful meal. I'm a lucky girl, I tell ya...

Next up is a picture of me next to the board which gets updated each morning with something clever. Letter Rip. I loved it. I was in a better mood the second day. I played seven games the first day and won only one game. And the highlight from that game (against a club member, Brian) was "jounces" for 107 points. It was a close game though. Brian only lost by 15 points. On day two I won 3 out of 7 games so I felt a little better about that, too. My highest scoring game was on day two and it was for 482 points. I actually played 3 bingos in a row - haunters, atoners, and rebaited. Two of the bingos were 8 letters each. None of them scored as much as "jounces" though.

If they were giving prizes for the best t-shirts, these two would get my vote.

After we play Scrabble all day, we go back to our rooms and play more. I know, it's sick. ;) These are two of my roomies, Joan and Yvonne, with Brian (I keep transposing his name when I type it and it keeps coming up Brain!). Little wonder - he's an up and comer. Anyway, we decided to try out Super Scrabble one night. There are 200 tiles instead of 100 and 4 blanks. The board is bigger, too. It made for some interesting plays. And the next picture is with another club member, Jill.

And then we went to the reception. Here I am with Paul again. I love getting dressed up. Days three and four were uneventful. I won 3 out 7 games on day three and 4 out of 7 games on day 4 for an overall record of 11 wins and 17 losses. I wanted to play better but it's like golf. Guys have a bad round and swear off the game. Next day they're right back at it. And that's how it is with Scrabble. It's an addiction and you can never get enough. Word up!

A San Francisco Treat (Part II)

2008-08-02T19:44:00.026-04:00

I haven't posted in almost two months. Worse yet is that I have to finish this blog before I can write about the National Scrabble Tournament I attended this past week. I feel terrible that it's taken so long but July was one of the busiest months I have had all year. I look back at my calendar and there wasn't a day that something wasn't going on. So, where was I? Oh, yea. The whole reason for our trip to SF was so that Curt could participate in the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon. It was all about the sightseeing and shopping for me. Curt rode his bike to the triathlon and left at least a few hours before me. We were at least a couple of miles from the race start but close enough for me to walk. It was a gorgeous morning and I overheard someone commenting about the condition of the water. I guess the Bay can be quite choppy but it was relatively calm this morning. This made for some great swim times for a lot of the athletes. My first picture is of Alacatraz. The boat between the prison and another larger vessel out there to the right has about 1800 athletes on it getting ready to swim to shore.

Even before Curt got out of the water, the male winner, Andy Potts, was out of the water and running! He's the guy in the black and red wetsuit. Andy had hopes of being a two-time Olympian but he did not qualify this year. He was the repeat champ at this year's Escape from Alcatraz. His time for the event was 2:01:57. His swim time was 24:59 compared to Curt's 41:13. But Andy is a professional athlete and this was to be expected. Curt's overall time for the race was 3:24:38. He escaped!!!

They look like whitecaps on the water but those are all swimmers you see in this picture. The crowd was huge and hard to get through so I was thrilled that I was able to see Curt come out of the water. I got ahead of him and saw him heading to the transition area, too, to get his bike.

There are three guys in blue jerseys in the next picture - Curt is the furthest one away. The Bay is on the right and even though you can't see the spectators on the left, the front windows of the homes on the left were lined with people inside. What a view. Next I headed to the finish line so I could see the first finishers. I was there when Andy Potts finished and that was very exciting. There were a few guys in prison garb which I thought was pretty cool, too. They make it look so easy, don't they?

And now it was time to start looking for Curt. He is coming down the chute to the finish line. And last, but not least, my hero in front of the Golden Gate Bridge. This blog was prepared while listening to the Flight 26 channel on XM Satellite Radio. Each issue of a free publication in the area called "Skirt" writes about the music they used to prepare each edition. I like that idea and now I'm going to adopt the practice. I've bought a lot of new music lately so you'll be hearing about it from time to time! Don't forget you can double click on each picture to enlarge that picture. You're going to want to see Andy Potts up close! And that's not to say that that isn't a FINE picture of Curt either. Curt is still training for his first Ironman in November but meanwhile he has entered us as a relay team in an upcoming triathlon. He is going to swim, I'm going to bike, and he's going to run. I'll keep you posted! ;)

A San Francisco Treat (Part I)

2008-06-20T19:43:00.015-04:00

We arrived in SF on a Wednesday afternoon and took advantage of the time change to wander around Fisherman's Wharf. Our hotel was on the wharf which made it very convenient for getting around. One of the biggest attractions at Pier 39 is the seals. This was the end of the day but they can be quite playful and active at other times.

On the day Curt did a practice swim in the bay and picked up the bike he shipped about two weeks earlier, I took a ferry to Sausalito to shop. It is about 20-30 min trip across the bay. The views of the prison and my first glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge are from the ferry.

This is a t-shirt I spotted in a shop near our hotel. Curt didn't think it was funny, of course, but I thought it was hilarious. Make sure you double click on the pictures to enlarge them. The other t-shirt is hilarious, too. They were selling them for Father's Day.

How big is a redwood tree? Need I say more? On Saturday Curt and I traveled to Muir Woods with a friend and her family that I met when I first moved to FL. Sue and I met at a yoga class in 2001 and then she moved to CA in 2003. She and her family are avid hikers and knew the area well. They were our official guides for the day and we welcomed their company. Curt and I are pictured here with Sue and Todd's two children, Nick and Jessica. Curt and Nick are bringing up the rear in the picture below.

The above picture is one of my favorites from the whole trip. I just didn't know how to capture the enormity of the tree so all I could do was look up and shoot. I think it turned out well. And one last pic with Nick and Jessica. The Escape from Alcatraz coming up in Part II!

I Live Where You Vacation

2008-05-11T09:28:00.026-04:00

It was a reunion, of sorts. Four people from Oneonta who all met for the evening at Eric and Jayne's. There was me, Cindy, Dave, and Eric. Four kids who grew up in Oneonta and haven't seen each other (well, some of us) for quite some time. Dave is the only one who doesn't live in Florida. He flew in from MN. But the evening got more interesting when we discovered that Carl, Dave's wife, and Jayne are all from Long Island. This is a picture taken on the lanai at Eric and Jayne's. That's Carl, Eric, Cindy, and Jayne in the picture. Jayne and Eric live in Tarpon Springs which is on the Gulf of Mexico side of Florida.

Dave, Suzanne (Dave's wife), and Cindy to the right. Dave and Cindy below.

This is Katie and Tom. They are Eric and Jayne's children. Katie is graduating from high school next month and Tom is entering 8th grade in the fall. Below you will also see Carl getting a little animated (as Italians have a tendency to do and don't I know!) while he, Jayne, and Suzanne discuss the 5 burroughs of NYC and their boundaries. Those are Dave's hand mimicking Carl's! And that was just Friday night...

Saturday evening started with a seafood festival in New Port Richey. That's me and Curt with Carl to the left. And below I'm trying on the hat Cindy bought. She saw how good it looked on me and had to have it! LOL Backatcha, sistah, but I think I still owe you a couple more...

Here's our femme fatale with the hat she just had to have doing her impersonation of Minnie Pearl (see below). Geez, I hope you're all old enough to remember Minnie Pearl. If not, she was a woman who always left the price tag on her hats.

Cindy spotted this steeple while at the festival and thought it would be a great picture. I agree. She has a great eye for pictures, just like Diana. And, oh, if they don't have the same sense of humor and knack for storytelling. I can't wait for these two to meet. Talk about meeting your match...

A nice picture of Carl and Curt on the left with a picture of the "Polly Want a Cracker" greeter at the Crab Shack where we went for dinner. We're still on the Gulf side of Florida and the restaurant sits on the Cootee River. Carl says that "back in the day" this area was a magnet for the rich and famous. We took a drive around after dinner and I could see why. I said that I didn't want to drive along the river - I want to live on the river!

We were joined by Joe and Denise who are friends of Carl's. There was a great band there so instead of strutting our stuff in the surf, we took it to the stage. What a good time.

Thanks to Cindy's good eye, she also spotted this plate in the parking lot when we left! Isn't that awesome???? I didn't think about it at the time but that's a plate they no longer make in NY. It was on the front of the vehicle so I'll bet there's a FL plate in the back. I think we need to go back and check it out - I'll bet the patron is a regular!
And last but not least, Curt insisted on getting his picture with Cindy! ;)

Life is a Highway...

2008-04-20T20:36:00.024-04:00

I wanna drive it all night long. And talk about getting the show on the road! Tampa to St George Island. That's where I went this weekend with a friend from my hometown of Oneonta, NY. Cindy (Cyd as she likes to be called) and I haven't seen each other in over 40 years. Not since she gave me a going away party when my family moved to Syracuse. I recently learned she lived about a half hour away from me and we planned this trip to the beach. If anyone had told me earlier that I was going to meet a friend who likes to go shopping, to the beach, AND corvettes, I wouldn't have believed them. I mean, what are the chances?!

There's Cyd marketing the cd we made the night before we left. We downloaded songs from our "era" and then a few extras for some good driving music. Needless to say, the first song was "Life is a Highway" in honor of our mutual friend, Kathy. We included Steppenwolf's "Born to be Wild," The Guess Who's "American Woman," and James Brown's "I Feel Good."

Now, to answer that age old question "Is there enough room in the trunk of a corvette to put everything two girls need for a weekend getaway?" we can show you definitively that it can be done. We had 7 pairs of shoes before Cyd bought two more pairs and about 8 bags between the two of us. And, yes, there was room to bring home all the things we bought when we went shopping. We were more or less forced to go shopping Saturday morning when we woke up to rain. What's a girl to do?

We stayed at this wonderful little place called the St George Inn. Three floors with doors to the inside of the inn and french doors to the veranda. Instead of separate balconies for each room, you can walk around the entire floor and sit in one of the rocking chairs that line the porch. If you sit in front of our room (we stayed in Windjammer), you can see the Gulf of Mexico to the left. If you look to your right, you can view the Intercoastal Waterway. It was so perfect in every way. We felt so safe and so comfortable that when we woke up Sunday morning at 4:30am, we opened the french doors for air and went back to sleep. How many places can you do that?

There's Cyd standing at the railing outside of our room. And next you see us lounging before breakfast.

Sunday morning we decided to go to "church" and worship the sun gods. We put on the clothes we bought the day before and strutted our stuff in the surf.

And just for giggles, here's a picture of a sign in the place we had pizza Saturday night (get your mind out of the gutter!) AND the results of Girls Gone Wild. Well, it's OUR version of Girls Gone Wild! The last picture of me in front of the car was taken by Cindy on our way to church ala Marilyn Monroe style! She took a lot more but missed the deadline for blog posting time!

The Big Chill

2008-03-17T22:22:00.014-04:00

The Florida Great Escape was held on Sunday, March 9, in Clermont, FL which is just outside of Orlando. It was probably one of the coldest weekends of the year. We drove over the day before and got a room for the night. I rode the bike course with Curt on Saturday and had to pedal going downhill. Swear. That's how windy it was. The temperature on Sunday was predicted to be high 30s and the swim started at 8am in Lake Louisa. How cold was it, you ask? Well, take a look at Lady Di. It was SO cold she wouldn't share her blankie. Now that's cold. I mean literally. I mean figuratively.

Here's Bigun and Curt before the swim. It's not until you take a look at Curt coming out of the water do you notice how warmly all the onlookers are dressed. Hoods up over their heads. Some have gloves on. More blankets. I don't know how these guys did it. And the guy next to Curt didn't even have a wet suit. OMG.

And check out the "Bathing Area Closed" sign. It's not too far from the "Beware of Alligators" sign. Seriously.

Lady Di got the action shots so I have to give credit where credit is due. Looks like someone knows he's getting his picture taken, doesn't he? Actually, I think it's something she just said to him like...umm...nice disk wheel! ;)

And then the run. How does he do it? How does she do it? Lady Di always seems to catch Curt floating on air. Nice.

The sole reason for entering the Florida Great Escape was so that Curt could qualify for the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon in June. In order to qualify he needed to finish first or second in his age group which he didn't do BUT there were 27 lottery slots available and Curt was lucky enough to get one of them. San Francisco, here we come. Woohoo!!!

Always wait for the fat lady...

2008-03-04T19:35:00.011-05:00

Winning isn't everything. It's the only thing. Know who said that? Vince Lombardi. Here is my friend, Ben. The first time we played Scrabble he brought over his degree in Scrabble to try to intimidate me. It's in Arabic so I'm not really sure he has a degree in Scrabble. Anyway, it didn't work. Here's one of our latest games. Ben was ahead the entire game. I was resigned to losing. This game was played online but it was such a great game that I went to the trouble to recreate it on ONE of my boards. Sweet, huh? So check it out:

Ben opens with extant for a whopping 42 pts. All I can counter with is argue for 7 pts. He comes back with qaid for 54! This guy is on fire. I've got so many vowels right now that I'm going to exchange on the next turn but I'm able to play queue for 42. The score is now 96-49 in Ben's favor. His next play is a beautiful parallel play - he puts down dial for 30. All I have is amia for 13. Next he plays an el in front of amia for lamia adding a cee to form talc. He gets 19 pts for this play BUT it's worth so much more because I challenge lamia and lose. :( What the heck is a lamia? Now it's 145 to 62. Ben isn't just ahead - he's way ahead. He exchanges on his next turn and I play etic for 18 pts. Ben comes back with ye for 32. Nice. I can only get 10 for pleat and Ben plays lorn for 8. Vino only gets me 7 and now the score is 185 to 97 Ben (still). I usually get more out of my wine. :)

Okay, he can have this one. He deserves it. He's a good sport, after all. I keep winning and winning and he doesn't get discouraged. I like this guy. So it's his turn to win, right? He comes back with rove for 16 and then I play jot for 36 - caught a break. Ben plays vein for 14 and I get 27 for heh. He's still ahead at 215 to 160. Then he attacks me with nabs for 47. Wow. I play zed for 26. He wants some of the zee action and plays zip for 20. I get another chance to get back in the game with flows for 48. Not enough. Ben is still ahead 282 to 234.

Next he plays gamest for 34 which adds an es to zed. He's working that zee more than some girls work a corner. Geez. But I reply with stingy for 35. He's still got me though. The score is now 316 to 269. Ahead of me the whole game, I tell ya. Ben's next play is gun for 12 and I play kir for 20. He comes back with ef for 20 making the score now 348 to 289. What are the chances? Wonder Woman swoops in for the save and plays BREWINGS for 64 points and to win the game 348-367. Woohoo!!!!!!!

Weekend Updates

2008-02-27T20:30:00.017-05:00

Bike Sebring 2008. This was two weekends ago on February 16. Curt rode from 6:30am until almost 6:30pm to win second place in his division. He rode a total of 193.2 miles. He consumed 9,000 calories and one bike tire. It was exciting to see the 12 hour cyclers finish and to watch the 24 hour cyclers being diverted to the race track at Sebring for their final 12 hours. Most of the first 12 hours is on the road but the cyclers just lap the race track for the last 12 since it's at night. One of the highlights of the race was a handcycler who was trying to beat a world record and he did! His name is Keane West and he rode 322.4 in 24 hours. The previous record was 267.3 miles. Congratulations, Keane, you were awesome out there. If you ever find yourself reading this, I'm the one you were flirting with on each lap in! ;)

Last weekend I drove to Columbus, GA to visit a friend I haven't seen in quite some time. Four hundreds miles each way and tons of music in between. I like to drive and my car likes to be driven. It's so true what they say about enjoying your journey more than your destination. Half the fun really was getting there. On the way back, another corvette teamed up with mine for almost two hours. You would have sworn we were together. I hated to see him go. Nothing like a little company on the road. Paula and I are both Scorpios - both born on the same day, matter of fact, except Paula is two years younger. Here we are on Sunday morning scoping out some sculptures that are on exhibit downtown. It was cold (brrr) in GA.

Then we launched into our artsy fartsy stuff. We were lucky enough to get someone to take our picture together once but then we had to improvise. We decided that all those glass window fronts were perfect reflections of us! This next one reminded Paula of a condensed version of the Beatle's Abbey Road. I'll have to agree.

We both especially liked this next one not so much because we're in it but more because of what is captured in the background - just look at that gorgeous tree!

Next up are a couple of the featured sculptures downtown. I need to get the background on the one Paula is examining but I found an article in the local paper, the Ledger-Enquirer, detailing the one of the little girl in the poncho. It is called "May Flower" by artist, Susan Geissler, of Youngstown, NY.

This is just the side of a building in downtown Columbus that I thought was cool.

It was SO cold Saturday night - how cold you ask? Well, it was a three dog night but Paula only has two. Meet George, her oldest, and Mercy, her youngest.

And what weekend would be complete without a Champion car show? Here is my favorite car, evah. It's a 1963 Corvette - the only year with a split window in the back. Stevie Wonders...isn't she lovely?

My Pace or Yours?

2008-02-13T22:34:00.010-05:00

Gasparilla 2008! And my first half marathon (13.1 miles). The weekend started with an Expo at the Tampa Convention Center. That's where we picked up our race packets and wandered around looking at all the running gear. There were some great t-shirts from OneMoreMile.net. My Pace or Yours? Find Your Happy Pace. Do Not Pass - Race Official (my favorite). Will Run for Wine. In My Dreams, I am a Kenyan (Curt's favorite!). Team in Training (TNT) held a pasta party for all the Gasparilla half and full marathoners. Stacey, Laura's daughter, and Curt joined us for dinner. That's when we learned that our team raised over $114,000.00 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Together, Laura and I raised over $3,600.00. We feasted on carbs and headed back to our room at the Tampa Hyatt. That was one of our perks - being put up in the hotel the night before. Stacey spent the night with us but Curt needed to go home. Zookeeper duties, doncha know?

Wake up call!! Time to get ready for our 6am race! We were out the door by 4:30 to meet our teammates for breakfast in one of the hotel suites. We left as a group at 5:15 for the start line on Bayshore Blvd. I found Curt right away - my wingman. Lord knows he could have run this race in half the time but he never left my side throughout the entire race.

The first six miles were on Davis Island. There were flute players, violinists, jugglers, and a whole bunch of folks having their morning coffee while watching the race. Race organizers tried to keep it somewhat subdued in the early hours so as not to disturb too many people that early in the morning. But when the sun came up and we got to Bayshore Blvd for the last leg of our race there were all kinds of bands and people cheering us on. And what race would be complete without everyone's favorite sherpa? Check out Diana (circled in yellow) with her cowbell who joined Laura at the finish line. We couldn't get a late check out at the hotel so we missed Bigun finish the full marathon.

It was a glorious morning. We ran in shorts and t-shorts and the temp was in the mid 60s which was perfect running weather. I was definitely in pain and this is when the coach tells you that it's a good idea to take an ice bath. We went shopping for 4 hours at two different malls. We just thought that's what everybody did! Our victory party was later that afternoon and, once again, Curt and Stacey joined us. My last picture is with Coach Steve and mentor, Marai. A couple of people you don't want to train without! We're going to see them again this summer at the FL 70.3 where they will both be competing in a half Ironman that Curt is registered for, too.

Everybody keeps asking me what's next!! If you have any ideas, just let me know. Meanwhile I'm following the coach's advice and taking it easy for a couple of weeks. I think Curt is going to write the coach a letter! At one point, when I told him I didn't think I could make it, he told me to run harder!!!!! Alrighty then...Been There, Run That.

Get on the Short Bus, Gus!

2008-01-11T18:18:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year. Happy "It's about time I posted a new blog." Holidays get a little crazy, as we all well know. Our office is closed during Christmas and New Year's and this is when Curt and I travel home to split our time between NY and PA to be with family. We stayed home this year. We stayed home so I could stick to my training schedule. And stick to it I did. So Curt worked albeit it mostly half days and I played a LOT of Scrabble in addition to getting some things done around the house. I feel bad admitting it but it

was nice to stay home for a change. New Year's Eve was pretty lame though. I think we were both asleep by 11. We made up for it on New Year's Day though. We took a last minute kayaking trip down the Hillsborough River with Di and Bigun. Di's brother, Dewain, was in town visiting and went along, too. It was a great afternoon.

Don't you just LOVE the short bus? Our bus driver promised us a picture with a helmet when we got back but it was gone. Bummer. :( That would have been a great shot. But I'm happy that the route number looks like the word "Joe." I'm trying to make a moniker calendar for Tom and Joe this year so I'm photographing everything I can with their names. I bought calendars like that for them the year before but it occurred to me that I could make my own. This was a great find. So how did everyone else spend their holidays or their New Year's Eve/Day? Let me know(if you remember!) and have a GREAT TWO THOUSAND EIGHT!

Welcome to the Jungle

2007-12-05T21:57:00.000-05:00

In the jungle, welcome to the jungle, watch it bring you to your knees, knees, I wanna watch you bleed.

Those are lyrics from Guns N' Roses

"Welcome to the Jungle." Tonight was Lowry Park Zoo's annual Jingle Bell Race.

It was supposed to be a run through the park and the zoo while everything was lit up except you couldn't see where you were going for half the run. It was so dark out there that people were falling and tripping all over the place. I overheard some guy complaining about the course and I yelled back, "Why do you think they make us sign waivers?" He said, "You signed yours? Not me, I need the money." That totally cracked me up.

This is normally a group training night for Team in Training. Instead of our usual meeting place we decided we would all meet for the race. So here's a few pictures of the people I've been training with over the past four months. My friend, Carmen, joined me this evening, and I'm glad she did. We ran 5 miles together last night so tonight was going to be a piece of cake. I ran the 5K without stopping to walk - first time. The time was 38:48 when we crossed the finish line but I asked Curt if I could subtract a couple of minutes because we were at the back of the starting line. He said, "Honey, you can subtract 10 minutes!" so I did. My official time is now 28:48. Above is my mentor on the left and my coach on the right. I am not using their names to protect the guilty.

Santa sneaking around...

Who Let the Dogs Out?

2007-11-18T19:12:00.001-05:00

Today was the semi-annual Greyhound picnic at Al Lopez Park in Tampa, FL. It was sponsored by Greyhound Rescues and Adoptions of Tampa Bay, FL Inc. It was a gorgeous fall day and perfect weather for a picnic (my apologies to those in the north reading my blog!). I love raffles (or is that I love to gamble?) and my tickets paid off. We left with four buckets of dog treats and a Godiva gift basket. I'm a lucky girl, I tell ya. After woofing down some lunch, there was a costume contest and Princess Leah won. Abby entered the contest for longest tail but at 21 inches she was shy two inches from becoming the winner. Abby's foster mom, Norma, was there and each time you go you recognize more and more people. Norma took care of Abby while Curt was in Iraq and she takes care of Abby when we go on vacation or away for the weekend. What I didn't realize was that she always give half of the money she earns for taking care of Abby to an organization that helps rescue the dogs - the hard core cases. What a wonderful woman. The dogs didn't have much to say since they truly are among the quietest in the animal kingdom but they do make for greyt pictures!

Why, they're pupcakes, of course!

Three Dog Day? ;)

Man and his best friend...

Into the garbage chute, flyboy!

Wassup dawg?

Dog tired!

Sweet 16!

2007-11-08T18:57:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, November 10, Curt and I will celebrate 16 years of marriage. It is always a time of reflection. Where have we been, where are we now, where are we going? It occurred to me that I could only remember the way we celebrated our first anniversary but fortunately I keep a diary. I decided to go back and take a look at all of those special days. Diaries are great. I've kept one for over 20 years. Now, for some excerpts...

11/10/92

I drove from Fayetteville, NC to Fort Eustis, VA which took me 4-1/2 hours. I saw cotton fields for the first time. I remember stopping to pick some up so that I could send it to the boys. And the sight crossing the James River at dusk was one of the most awesome views I ever beheld. It was a full moon just above the skyline of ships and buildings of Newport News. I stayed at the Mulberry Inn and had dinner at the Bull's Head with two LTCs and two NCOs from Argentina. Curt was working at the US Embassy in Buenos Aires at the time and flew back to the US to show them around or otherwise I wouldn't have seen him at all. He gave me diamond earrings to fulfill a promise my father made me when I was little and never kept. The guys didn't speak a word of English and I guess that is what was so memorable about my first anniversary!

11/10/93

I'm still in school working on my Accounting degree and I was last year at this time, too. We went to the DeLafayette in Fayetteville, NC for dinner and I will always remember this evening because I used rubber bands to hold up knee highs when I realized I didn't have the right color hose for the outfit I was wearing. And Curt says he will always remember ordering Duck L'Orange. I recevied four anniversary cards from Curt.

11/10/94

Still in school and still living in Fayetteville, NC. We went to the Lobster House for dinner. Curt ordered a cake and champagne to help celebrate which was a nice surprise. Curt also placed a strand of 68 pearls around my neck - they were breathtaking.

11/10/95

My gift this year was a book called "Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus." We ate at The Barn in Fayetteville, NC. I saw my dentist, Dr Barbaro, there as well as GEN Shelton and his wife, Carolyn. After that we went to see "Of Mice and Men" at the theater starring Abraham Benrubi (E.R.). Curt and I ran this afternoon. I had on a tank top and shorts but recently wore tights and a turtleneck.

11/10/96

Curt and I went to the Choctaw Grill in Columbus, GA to watch the Packers play the Kansas City Chiefs. The Packers lost 27-20. We ate soup and sandwiches for dinner and then went home to watch "Multiplicity" on video while drinking a bottle of champagne.

11/10/97

Our sixth anniversary was on a Monday and we went to the Mt Vernon Inn in Alexandria, VA for dinner after work.

11/10/98

Went to Mike's Ristorante on Rte 1 in Alexandria, VA right down from our townhouse. We got the special which was two entrees and a bottle of wine for 27.95. Curt had lasagna and I had baked manicotti stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese. It was excellent. It was, however, a very dreary day and raining.

11/10/99

We were now living in Clarksville, TN and went to Hananoki for dinner. It is a Japanese steak house. We each had lobster, shrimp, and scallops. We watched "Beauty and the Beast" this evening which my boss let me borrow from her children. It was another anniversary during the week. This is the anniversary that I bought a leather outfit to wear for Curt. I DO have a picture!

11/10/00

We went to the Blackhorse for lunch while still living in Clarksville. We didn't do anything tonight because we're going to celebrate tomorrow. We went to Nashville the next day to see "Annie Get Your Gun" starring Tom Wopat, Marilou Henner, and Larry Storch. Went to Valentino's for dinner and we both had lasagna. Our second row seats were compliments of my boss, Nancy.

11/10/01

Our tenth anniversary and we're now living in Tampa, FL. We went to Cafe Creole for dinner in Ybor City. We had blackened shrimp for an appetizer, house salads, shrimp creole, and bread pudding for dessert. I drank Pinot Noir and Curt had a glass of Reisling. We walked around for a short while and then went home to watch "The Natural" on tv.

11/10/02

We went to a greyhound picnic this afternoon and had lunch there. I was very disappointed because it was more of a social event or reunion than a chance to meet dogs who needed to be adopted. I think Curt and I were the only ones there without a dog. From there we went to the Brandon Brew House where we had dinner while watching the Packers stomp the Detroit Lions. In retrospect, I don't think I would get married again during football season!

11/10/03

We actually celebrated on 11/8 by having dinner at Bonefish Grill because we were both taking classes at USF. November 8th must have been a Saturday and then we had class on Monday.

11/10/04

We were still both taking classes again this year and celebrated last night by going to Bonefish Grill again. At some point I asked Curt if we could go back to being husband and wife once he got his MBA. He went to school full time and worked full time for two years. That's when he mentioned getting a PhD. Omg!

11/10/05

This is the first time ever that Curt and I were separated for our anniversary. Curt was in Iraq but sent a dozen roses to me at work. My boss, Laura, however gave up a hockey game to spend the evening with me so I wouldn't be alone. That was huge. She never gives up a hockey game! We went to Estela's for dinner and then to the theater to see "Dreamer" starring Kurt Russell and Dakota Fanning. It was a good movie.

11/10/06

Curt got home from a year's deployment to Iraq in July but was sent back to Qatar for a couple more months. Once again, I was alone. We were able to speak briefly. My friend, Tom, came over tonight and we played five games of Scrabble. When you can't be with the one you love...do something you love?

I couldn't tell you about all our anniversaries without sharing a little bit of the courtship. It was a sweet one but I didn't realize how sweet until I got the following email from one of Curt's friends, Ian. Here goes (used without permission!):

OK Linda
A couple of things you may or may not know about Brandt.
1. As company commander he was supposed to be our senior because he was a
captain and we were his
lieutenants
as luck would have it all 3 lieutenants were older than him
one had been to ranger school before him
but what bothered him the most was that my car was older and had more
miles on it than his
so instead of being a father figure to us he was more like a more
knowledgeable warrior brother
2.Brandt says about 5 maybe 6 words a month - you better listen when he
opens his mouth - because it is usually intelligent and highly relevant to
whatever situation you happen to be in
3. H e doesn't freak out when things are going real bad - even when a
battalion commander is having a sense of humor failure with him because
brandt refuses to do the West Point Teapot dance...
4. (refer back to number2) imagine our surprise when we (the lieutenants)
were in the middle of an operations order and Brandt all of a sudden out of
nowhere comments "the neighborlady made me cookies - they were good"
This was big news, no one had ever heard him say so much in one sentence
let alone divulge details of his personal life- by way of comparison, for
him this was the equivalent of writing a novel the length of "War and
Peace" .
5. ANy ways he never did give up any of the cookies or the lady behind them
- our secret theory was that he was afraid that if she met any of us she
would abandon him because we are all really good looking (especially fred
from Mississippi) we concluded that anything that he would guard so closely
must be a rare treasure indeed. Eventually his command time was up and he
was replaced by a commander of epic proportions so I never did hear the end
of the cookie lady mystery but am glad that it had a happy ending .
I remain
your humble servant
Lt Joyce

Happy Anniversary, Curt, and thanks for the memories! (aka Cookie Lady) ;)

Xtra, Xtra, Read All About Me!

2007-11-01T19:23:00.000-04:00

It's Scorpio season (Oct 24 - Nov 22). The dates may differ slightly depending on your reference. My reference is Linda Goodman's "Sun Signs." This book is pretty cool because the author divides each astrological sign into six parts. For example, there is How to Recognize Scorpio, The Scorpio Man, The Scorpio Woman, The Scorpio Child, The Scorpio Boss, and The Scorpio Employee. Goodman also wrote another book called "Love Signs" in which she pairs all possibilities of signs for their compatibility. I'm not saying I believe in all of this but I've selected some excerpts from The Scorpio Woman that I felt were worth sharing.

The female Scorpio has a deep, mysterious beauty. she's magnetic, proud and totally confident. But she has one regret. She was not born a man.

I can almost feel the heat from here when Pluto women hear about that revelation. There's not a Scorpio female alive who doesn't think she's all woman, and you may wonder what I'm talking about yourself, if you're in love with one. This girl certainly has enough glamour, and she's enormously seductive. But I didn't say she looked like a boy, nor did I intend to imply she doesn't do a bang-up job of being a female. It's just that, unconsciously, she would prefer to be a man. Less restriction--more opportunity. It's the one secret she even hides from herself, and seeing it exposed won't sit well with her.

Once the Scorpio girl has figured out the diffference between blue booties and pink booties, she'll resign herself to wearing the pink ones, because she's fabulous at making the best out of a situation. But pink is not her natural color. The true shade of her nature is dark maroon, or deep wine-red, not a female color at all. However, to give her proper tribute, she's able to make you think it is. I know one who's great at pretending to be a fragile, fluffy kitten. She purrs so contentedly, most men guess she's an ultra-feminine Piscean. They topple into her trap and wake up later, sadder but wiser. She is no kitten.

***************

The Scorpio girl walks toward you slowly, seductively, and silently delivers her private message. It's puzzling, but these women can look seductive in jeans, jodhpurs, or basketball shoes.

***************

I wouldn't advise you to insult a Scorpio. It's just not healthy. If you don't know what I mean, ask someone who has. He may have some stories to tell that will curl your hair.

***************

Having once acheived closeness with a female Scorpio, you can be positive you're a unique and unusual man. You can also be sure that her love for you is unmatched by any you'll ever experience--and you can take that in several ways. You'll be the most important interest in her life. If she's a typical Pluto girl, she'll boost you loyally, and try to please you with passionate intensity. If you're too hard to please, she'll show her frustration with passionate attempts to conquer your disinterest.

***************

She's never just slightly interested. It's impossible for her to be detached or casual. She seldom likes or dislikes a play, a book, religion, furniture or people. She either bitterly resents or she intensely worships. If one of these two passions can't be aroused, then she totally ignores, with ice around the edges. Yet, through it all, she'll remain essentially untouched by emotional storms, judging at least from her placid exterior, which always drapes itself around her after each minor and major nuclear explosion.

***************

It's true that the Scorpio girl sometimes wanders into dangerous waters in her efforts to penetrate life, and since there's not the slightest trace of fear in her, her search may indeed take her into some weird byways. But the typical Scorpio will emerge from any discovery still strong and pure. If she allows the journey to soil her inner spirit, Pluto will punish her with anguished remorse and guilt; yet she can still call on her great strength of character to rise again, like the phoenix, from the ashes of her experiments. In Kalil Gibran's writings, the Prophet replies, in answer to a question about Evil, "Of the Good in you I can speak, but not of the Evil. For what is Evil but Good--tortured by its own hunger and thirst? When Good is hungry, it seeks food, even in dark caves, and when it thirsts, it drinks even of dead waters." A perfect description of Scorpio.

***************

A Scorpio woman will be incredibly loyal to those she finds strong and deserving, but the weak ones will never be honored by her glance. Her dignity in human relationships can make her seem aloof and snobbish. In a way, she definitely is, because she practices a personal caste system, and it's more clearly marked than than of her Leo and Capricorn sisters. All Scorpios are highly selective in friendships. They'll keep the worthy companions through an entire lifetime, and freeze the shallow, the common, or the unworthy. There's an immense store of perseverence and determination buried in the the nature of a Scorpio woman, and any time she chooses, she can call on these to help her master the excesses which may tempt her, from drink and drugs to self-destructive, ruthless revenge and dangerous depression. Sooner or later, she'll probably investigate some form of the occult, and ancient mysteries and unseen worlds will eventually have her respect, though Scorpios can range all the way from religious fervor to total atheism during a lifetime.

***************

As much as she needs security of home roots, she'll move if it's necessary to your career, and without any visible flinching at the uprooting. She makes an excellent wife for an army or navy man and a real jewel for a politician. There's no one she can't see through, no deception that escapes her. A Scorpio woman can tell you exactly who can be trusted and which ones you have to watch. The Pisces wife has the same ability, but she may be too soft to criticize, too ready to make excuses for the failings of others. Not so the Scorpio female. In fact, she may frequently have to check her sharp tongue and tone down her brutul analysis.

***************

Her natural interest in the opposite sex, even if it remains platonic, may give you as much reason to be jealous of her as she is of you. She'll probably fascinate every male in sight on occasion, and you may have to sit by while they're mesmerized. It seldom leads to anything serious, but it can cause some explosive disagreeements. In the heat of the battle, it pays to remember that her compulsion to even the score usually makes her the winner in any kind of skirmish. She gets the last word. If you tell her a lie, she may tell two. If you stubbornly refuse to kiss her good-bye in the morning after a tiff, she may refuse to kiss you goodnight for a month. The Scorpio sense of justice is as strong as the sense of revenge. Most people forget this. She'll remember every kindness and give you back double for that, too. It works both ways.

***************

A Scorpio woman will sometimes nearly drown you in her passion for living, yet in a real storm, her cool, calm reason and steely strength will be a life raft. Though she works her magic in strange and secret ways, her haunting eyes will always gaze at you with basic honesty, even while she remains just beyond the reach of human understanding. She's a little dangerous, perhaps, but undeniably exciting.

***************

Comments?

Tri A Threesome

2007-10-28T18:47:00.000-04:00

Ok, get your mind out of the gutter - that's try a threesome as in swim, bike, run. I saw this on a t-shirt last weekend during Curt's first half Ironman competition in Clermont, FL just outside of Orlando. We stayed in a cabin at Lake Louisa State Park with friends, Diana and Marc, as Marc was competing in the same race. Curt's parents were on their way home from a trek across the country in their new motor home and were on hand for the weekend's events also.

We settled in the cabin on Friday which was complete with two bedrooms and two full baths. It is perfect for couples plus there is a sleeper sofa for two in the living room. There's a fireplace in the corner but someone's blocking the view! ;) We had a beautiful view of the lake with two single rockers and a double rocker on the screened porch.

But wait...what's this? Ding Dongs???? Geez, who can't leave home without these? All the comforts of home, really...

We all went out to dinner Friday night at a little place in Kissimmee called Bruno's. The guys always enjoy a little carb feast the night before a race and Italian food seems to fit the bill. While we were there, a man overheard us talking about Southpark and soon delivered a Kenny balloon to our table. It was too cool. We watched as the balloon man worked the crowd and made creations for other patrons. Kenny turned out to be a great marker in the transition area. Marc and Curt had no trouble finding their bikes with Kenny tied to the rack. Btw, nobody killed Kenny while we were there. He is dead now, however. Just ran out of air, I tell ya. Poor little guy.

Race day was Saturday morning and it was miserable. It was so cold that wetsuits were legal and it was raining so hard that I didn't bring my camera or cell phone with me. We actually missed the guys getting into the water but we were there when they finished their swims. I didn't get any pictures of that but later retrieved my camera and got a few of the guys running and biking. It was a 1.2 mile swim, a 58 mile bike, and a 13.1 mile run. Curt's goal was to finish in just a little under six hours and that's exactly what he did. It's hard to see from this picture of the lake but they had to run around the entire lake.

The next picture is Marc getting ready to dismount and you can tell because he's barefoot. My camera doesn't take action shots very well since it's only a point and shoot. Diana, on the other hand, has a very nice camera as you can see in the picture with the Ding Dongs. So it's worth checking out her race recap for more pictures as well as Marc's blog.

I like this particular picture of Curt running because his eyes are closed. More proof that this is something he does so much that he could do it in his sleep!

The Reel Story

2007-10-28T15:07:00.001-04:00

Billy S flew to FL to celebrate his 50th birthday. And what did he want to do for his birthday? He wanted to go fishing, of course. So I found a bass fishing guide, Jay Turner, near Kissimmee, FL. We spent the night before our trip in Kissimmee since we had to meet Jay at 6:45am. That's right, 6:45 in the morning - OMG! I haven't seen the sun rise in a loooooonnnnngggggg time but it was definitely worth it when you look at the picture. The next picture, taken with my brother's camera, shows a silhouette of me on the dock. I thought it was a pretty cool picture.

The sun finally came up and we got down to business with the help of our Fish Whisperer, Jay. I swear, if there was a lull in the action, Jay would summon more fish by calling for them to bite. First of all, we were very fortunate to be fishing on a private lake called Hinden Lake in Narcoosee, FL just outside of St Cloud, FL. I didn't see another boat on the water all morning except for someone water skiing and we were out there from about 7 to 1:30 or about 6-1/2 hours. In other words, we were competing with NO ONE for the fish which was just awesome. We began by taking pictures of every single fish we caught but after catching about 20 fish we had to stop. It was taking time away from our fishing! We initially went out with 4 dozen shiners but had to go back into town for 2 more dozen. We're pretty sure we caught between 30-35 fish and that's a conservative estimate. Most of them were large-mouth bass but we also hooked a few gar, pickerel, and a soft-shelled tortoise. All of them were released.

Yours truly with her big catch. BTW, size does matter! ;) And, last but not least, my brother's "Kiss my Bass" shot!

Billy described the day as one of his best days ever. That's exactly how I felt on my 50th birthday when I was joined by family and friends for a canoe trip down the Hillsborough River. Happy Birthday, Bro!

And, oh my gosh, I almost forgot!! My brother spent at least three hours detailing my car the night before he left. I couldn't help but think it was how I feel everytime I get my hair done and that is that it's never going to look like this again!

The Monkey and the Penguin

2007-10-21T23:35:00.000-04:00

Ok, ok, ok, I'll get to my posts on the bass fishing trip I took with my brother last week and Curt's half Ironman this weekend but in the meantime, here's a filler. Best. Costumes.Ever. Donna made these costumes for the boys in 1986 - wow!!!! Joe's the monkey and Tom's the penguin. Cutest.Kids.Ever. I can't even think of any costumes I wore when I was kid. How about you guys? Happy Halloween...

Birthday Boy

2007-09-29T14:34:00.000-04:00

So what's your favorite thing to do on your birthday? Mine is hearing from friends and family and eating cake. Curt would rather be racing and that's exactly how he spent his birthday last Sunday. He competed in the Sand Key Triathlon which was the very first triathlon he ever did last year in Clearwater. Only difference this year was that he took second place in his division and I was out in the water providing kayak support. Diana was out in the water with me and we were two of seven people providing kayak support. Her husband, Marc, was taking pictures instead of racing. I'm so glad, too, because I missed more than half the race by being out in the water. So any action shots (plus a few others) you see are courtesy of Team Taylor.

Curt went out in the first wave with the elite swimmers because he raced in the military division and they were honoring the military participants which I thought was great. The triathlon also had 8 soldiers competing in Iraq. They were sent race packets and everything.

Here's Curt coming in from the swim...

coming in from the bike...

and floating on air to the finish.

These were the guys racing in the military division.
The guy on the left took first place.

Our "star" took second place and speaking of stars...

One of Curt's friends, Ian, wondered why Curt had a star on his chest and wanted to know if he was one of those star-bellied sneeches from Dr Seuss that he has heard so much about. Then he sent me a picture that he apparently thinks bears a striking resemblance to Curt and me. I think I will hire Ian as a consultant for future blogs since he is so good at providing the comedic element I desperately need!

Date Night

2007-09-16T15:02:00.000-04:00

Saturday nights are date night - dinner and a movie or sometimes an occasional trip to the comedy club or the theater. We've been seriously slacking lately. It's always dinner but we've been coming home to watch a movie on pay-per-view rather than deal with the parking and crowds at the local theaters. I think our laziness all started when our favorite movie theater in Hyde Park closed to make way for condos. There was free parking and no crowds. It was perfect.

I was never fond of musicals but this one is an exception. Two of my favorites lines from the show are "I'm a good girl, I am" and "Why can't a woman be more like a man?" I guess the latter (line in "Hymn to Him") is just the tomboy in me coming out. Or maybe it's because I am one of the most atypical females a person could meet. OR, perhaps, it's my androgynous flavor. Whatevah...

Regardless, if you aren't familiar with the play, here is the Reader's Digest version. Professor Henry Higgins, a phoneticist, makes a proposal to Colonel Pickering that he can teach a Cockney flower girl, Eliza Doolittle, proper speech and etiquette at which point he could pass her off as royalty. The musical is based on a play called "Pygmalion" written by George Bernard Shaw in 1912. It was made into a movie in 1964 starring Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison. Great movie! Surely you've heard the tune "I Could Have Danced All Night." Yep, that's from "My Fair Lady."

What is the Pygmalion Effect? (found on the internet)

People tend to live up to what's expected of them and they tend to do better when treated as if they are capable of success. These are the lessons of The Pygmalion Effect. Pygmalion first appeared in Greek mythology as a king of Cyprus who carved and then fell in love with a statue of a woman, which Aphrodite brought to life as Galatea. Much later, George Barnard Shaw wrote a play, entitiled Pygmalion, about Henry Higgins (the gentleman) and Lisa Doolittle (the cockney flower girl whom Henry turns bets he can turn into a lady). So the Pygmalion Effect has come to mean "you get what you expect."

A couple of other amusing moments occurred during these lines also:

Mrs Higgins (the professor's mother): Where's the girl now?
Professor Higgins: She's being pinned. Some of the clothes we bought her didn't quite fit. I told Pickering we should have taken her with us.

Professor Higgins: There are even places where English completely disappears; in America they haven't used it in years.

Ah, the English! So after a quick bite to eat at Maggiano's, we headed for the theater. It's the only night we are able to eat together. Sad but true. And I finally invested in a pair of opera glasses. What a difference they made in enjoying the show. But I'm not going to need them in December. I was able to snag 5th row seats for the Rockettes - woohoo!

You tell me...

2007-09-11T20:43:00.000-04:00

I haven't had time for a new post in awhile so I got this great idea tonight. I decided to post a picture and have you guys tell the story. Tell me when it is, where I am, and who I am with. In other words, give me your best guesses! How lazy is that? Yeah, pretty lazy. And, MGel, you can't play! ;)

Billy S.

2007-08-29T22:08:00.000-04:00

Siblings born less than 12 months apart are known as Irish Twins. It wasn't until recently that I learned this was a derogatory comment about the stereotypic lack of contraception among Catholic families. So what do you have to say for yourself, Mom? So as my brother approaches his 50th birthday next month, we will share being 50 for a little over a month. Cool.

My brother's name is William Joseph which is why my first son is named Joseph William. But he prefers Billy S. One of my brother's best friends growing up was Billy B. who lived across the street. Another Catholic family with eight kids, I tell ya. So many kids that they raised the roof on their one story home and created a second story. True story. Anyway, my brother started signing his cards with his first and last name to make sure he never got confused with the other Billy. He stills signs his cards that way. Too funny.

So being only 11 months apart we spent a lot of time together growing up. I got to play in forts, with GI Joe's, and all other kinds of cool stuff because I had a brother. And one of our favorite games was to see who could make each other laugh first. Or we played our own version of a very early game show called Shenanigans. On the real show contestants walked a boardwalk of squares and won the prize on the square where they stopped. Billy and I would string our possessions on the floor in a row and take turns, probably rolling dice, to walk from piece to piece. We got to keep whatever we landed on but, of course, I always got my stuff back! Another one of my favorite things to do was make houses out of leaves and we would play in them for hours. We had our share of fights, too. I'll never forget when he was given permission to hit me back. He broke some bones and wore a cast on his hand for 6 weeks at the beginning of a summer vacation. No swimming for Billy Boy. I guess that's one tough jaw I have.

When I finally married and moved away, we spent less and less time together. But my brother is always there when I come home and always makes me feel special while I'm there. He's the kind of guy though that when I pray for him I ask the guardian angels to double up. He loves Harley Davidson motorcyles and once got in a very bad accident while serving in the Navy.

Billy S called me today to tell me he got some test results back that will require him to undergo a very aggressive treatment for Hepatitis C (most likely from a tatoo). The treatment will last 48 weeks with several side effects. It's not going to be easy. They will discontinue the treatment if he doesn't show improvement after 12 weeks. So I'm asking you to keep him in your prayers and to share a favorite memory growing up...

A little bit of this, a little bit of that...

2007-08-19T09:39:00.001-04:00

I made a new friend this summer, Tom. He lives in NYC and loves music. He made these two cds just for me. Making new friends is like breathing new life into your soul.

I did a bad, bad thing...

I added a bike rack to my corvette. Will you forgive me, Uncle John?

Fort DeSoto, St Pete. And the sign said you've got to have a membership card to get inside...

I guess Curt's USA Triathlon card is accepted at the Top Gun triathlon held at Fort DeSoto in St Pete a couple of weeks ago.

I joined Team in Training (TNT) last week so I could run the Gasaparilla half marathon with my boss in February!

I'll keep you posted on the training.

The "kids" table. I had a Scrabble party on Saturday...

My Scrabble buddy Tom beginning the game he wins

against the highest rated player in the room. Woohoo!

The grown up table! ;)

Lorenzo Lamas's double. And that's all she wrote!

We Drive Around

2007-08-09T19:54:00.001-04:00

Diana and I are getting bored driving up and down the same old routes

We gotta finda new place with some different wetsuits

Diana and I are getting real well known

Yeah, the other sherpas know us and they leave us alone

We drive around

Drive around round round we drive around

From race to race

Drive around round round we drive around

We're a real cool pair

Drive around round round we drive around

You haven't got a prayer

Drive around round round we drive around

We drive around

Round

Drive around round round oooo

Wah wa ooo

We always take my vette cause it's never been beat

And we've never missed yet with the racers we meet

None of the girls go alone cause it wouldn't be right

To leave the best racer home on a Business night

We drive around

Drive around round round we drive around

race to race

Drive around round round round we drive around

We'll take on your dare

Drive around round round we drive around

And leave you in dust, swear

Drive around round round we drive around

We drive around
Round

Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah

Drive round drive around

We drive around

Yeah

Drive around round round we drive around

Wah wa ooo

Drive around round round we drive around

Oooo ooo ooo

Drive around round round we drive around

Ahh ooo ooo

Drive around round round we drive around

Ahh ooo ooo

Drive around round round we drive around

Ahh ooo ooo

On the Road Again Part II

2007-08-02T17:42:00.000-04:00

Charlene keeps talking about this "doll" under the bed. I can't take it anymore. Here's a picture of the poor girl where I found her when I was visiting in August, 2001. I'm not sure how long they made her stand in the time out corner but I don't know how long she's been under the bed either! And what's the matter? Why can't she show her face? What's up with that? Notice the poor dear is still wearing the same clothes six years ago. Just when you think you know all there is to know about your friends. Wow.

On the Road Again

2007-07-30T18:00:00.000-04:00

Charlene and I go waaaaaaaaayyyyyyy back. This picture was taken 28 years ago in Watertown, NY. We haven't seen each other in a few years so it was time for a road trip to Boca Raton. East Coast Florida. OMG. SO different from West Coast Florida. She lives between West Palm Beach and Miami. Land of women with plastic faces and men who wear tassled shoes with no socks. Ewwwwww. But it's about a 4 hour drive (well, it's supposed to be!) and not one that either of us makes often enough. The pool action ended right before I got there but her youngest daughter, Sami, shared this photo of her and her boyfriend, Matt. She colored in the creature with PhotoShop and I thought that was very creative. Sami is a junior in college this year.

Charlene also has twins, Patrick and Colleen, born in 1983. As I recall, the twins were a complete surprise. Yeah, that could happen waaayyyyyyy back then. And here's a girl who was an only child and never babysat! That's funny, right? I'm sure you can look back and laugh now, Char.

So the Divine Miss M was worried that our weekend together would not be nearly as much fun as I had in New York. She couldn't have been more wrong. She found the greatest little place to visit Saturday night. We drove to Lighthouse Pointe to board a boat to an island on the intracoastal waterway. The restaurant we ate at, Caps, dates back to 1928. One of the most unique things about this restaurant (besides its prices!!!!!) was the fresh Okeechobee Hearts of Palm Salad. The Sabal Palm Tree is the Florida State tree and this is what they use to prepare the salad. The hearts come from the inner core and have a cabbage-like flavor hence its nickname swamp cabbage. Mmmmmmm...good.

Back at the house, I "coaxed" Charlene into telling me about her Emmy. ;) She is currently a producer at WPTV in West Palm Beach. Both she and her husband, Mike, have been in broadcoasting for over 30 years. Mike is currently the Director of Engineering at WXEL which is a public broadcasting station. Anyway, Charlene won the Emmy for a story she produced called "Get out Alive." It was about teaching children what to do in the event of a fire. And here's Char with her statue. Very impressive.

Patrick left for NC shortly after I arrived. And Colleen lives in Miami now that they are both out of school. I want to thank Colleen for leaving an empty bed at home so I wouldn't have to sleep on the futon this time. LOL. But here is the view from the futon Sunday morning when I woke up.

But, wait, what's this??????? Is this what I think it is? These guys are the most plugged in, techno savvy family I know. They have flat screen tvs, TIVO, IPODs, a Trio phone, Garmin navigators, wireless connections and notebook computers everywhere. And here sits a computer monitor that could probably get a spot on Antique Roadshow! And as if that weren't bad enough, check out what's under the bed!!!! I think this is what happened to the last guest who went around taking pictures they didn't know about...

In a New York Minute

2007-07-23T22:07:00.002-04:00

I flew to NYC on Friday for a one-day Scrabble tournament on Saturday. A fellow Scrabbler, Paul, picked me up at the airport in Newark, NJ. We had lunch outside at a little restaurant down the street from his apartment called Big Nick's Burger Joint. No meat for us though and the food was great. Then we took a walk down the street to the Boat Basin on the Hudson River. We saw the transition area being set up for the Nautica NYC Trithalon on Sunday (olympic distances). And then we headed to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. We had seats in an upper tier behind home plate - check out my view. The Yankees were playing the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (of all teams) Friday and we left after the 6th inning because the Yankees were losing (and lost) to TB. This bothered Paul considerably but the Yankees came back with a vengeance on Saturday and Sunday to win the rest of their games.

Paul lives on a 9th floor apartment on the west side in Manhattan. I woke up Saturday morning and took a picture of the view from the futon I was sleeping on in the kitchen/living room. Yeah, the apartments combine rooms to save space! I thought it was pretty cool. I had gone out for fresh bagels the night before so that's what we had for breakfast before heading out to the Comfort Diner for the Big Apple Tournament. Paul introduced me to everyone and I especially enjoyed meeting Lynda aka GuitarGirl. There's a great picture of her with Paul sitting in one of the booths. There were 32 people playing in four equal divisions of eight. I was initially the lowest rated player until another player was added at the last minute. Even so, I was only expected to win 1.4 games. I went in with a rating of 839 and the highest rated player in my division had a rating of 1388. That's a big difference and although I didn't beat the highest rated player, I exceeded my expectations and won 4 games. That added 70 points to my rating for a new rating of 909. Wow. On top of that, our host, Ira, let the winners of the last game keep the brand new board we were playing on. I won my last game. Incredible. And you would have thought that's where the excitement ended.

No, the evening only got better. I invited Zack Hample (author of Watching Baseball Smarter and How to Snag Major League Baseballs) to join us for the ice cream social after the games. I brought 6 of his new books with me to be autographed for friends and family. He was happy to oblige in exchange for cake, pie, and ice cream. Guys can be so EASY sometimes. It was so great to meet him in person. He used to play in the Manhattan Club so he knew practically everyone playing and it was nothing short of a reunion for most of them. But I couldn't let him get away without one game. I'm not saying who won but someone in the picture can't show his face. There's probably a rematch in our future. Guys can be so TOUGH sometimes. He's also pictured with Stefan Fastis who wrote Word Freak which is a favorite for many people who play Scrabble.

Zack, Paul, and I shared a cab home around 2am and I was so high from the day's events that I didn't get to sleep until 3 or later. But I was up shortly after 8 and since Paul was still sleeping I slipped out around 9 to watch the triathlon for a couple of hours. The swim started at 6 in the Hudson so I missed that but there were still bikers and runners out there who needed support. I joined Joe Stallone, whom I just met, in cheering on the guys and girls as they passed. Some of them even thanked us for coming out as they ran by. It was a great way to spend the morning. The race ended in Central Park but I hooked back up with Paul around 11:30 so that we could go to the Empire State Building. Fifty years old, from NY, and I've never been to the ESB. Thank you, Paul. It was a gorgeous day and the view was awesome. We strolled through Central Park (check out the picture of Bethesda Fountain aka Angel of the Waters) the next couple hours only stopping once for brunch at Tavern on the Green. Another treat. Thanks again, Paul. And before I knew it, it was time to go. The time went by so fast. Like in a New York minute...

If at first you don't succeed, Tri Tri again!

2007-07-15T21:02:00.000-04:00

This morning Curt participated in the Morton Plant Meese Triathlon (sprint triathlon or a Class C race as Bigun likes to call them). It was held at Sand Key in Clearwater on the Gulf of Mexico. Last night we enjoyed a carb fest at Angelina's with Team Taylor. It's just as important for the supporters of these events to have energy because there's a lot of cheering to be done and not just for our guys. Today I manned the kayak and Di manned the cowbell and camera, as usual.

The couple, Diane and Dennis, that we bought our kayak from called and asked if I would like to help provide kayak support and I was grateful for the opportunity. The first wave went out at 7am this morning and we met at 6 to get our gear together. Curt woke me up a little after 3:30am, however, and we left the house a little after 4. The transition area opened at 5 and a lot of guys/girls like to get there early to set up. The first picture is taken from my kayak as the sun starts to rise and the swimmers make their way down to the beach. Di sent me several pictures she took of me from shore. I wish I had room for more of them. And the group picture is one I took of the rest of our crew. Our crew included Diane's mother (who is 70 years old, btw!) and another couple, Art and Patty, in addition to a guy visiting from Wales, Matthew. We were spread out from the beginning to the finish line and were actually able to help a few swimmers . Swimmers are not disqualified if they hold onto the kayak to rest which is a good thing. We were out there a little longer than usual because the last swimmer in was 86 years old. What determination. I wish you could have seen him. I just missed Curt finishing the race because I was out in the water so long but there's a couple of pictures of him right after he's done and one with Bigun. And last, but not least, we have the arch nemesis, Tracy Parker (orange jersey). She doesn't even know she's the arch nemesis (Holy Cowbell, Batman!) and Curt doesn't even know her. He just knows that her name shows up on Athlink as a rival every time they're in a race together and she beats him in every race. This seems to bother him for some reason and that cracks me up. I think she beats Bigun, too, but she's only 36 and maybe she's expected to do better, guys????? Race results, you ask? I'll refer you to the Bigun's blog for all the details. Take it away, Bigun...

Well, I was born in a small town...

2007-07-08T21:25:00.000-04:00

Oneonta, NY. I WAS born in a small town. And I grew up with an uncle who started playing semi-pro ball when he was a sophomore in high school. He was on his way to the Mets organization before he was drafted and sent to Vietnam. His pitch was in the 90s. This is how I learned to love the game. And soldiers. And corvettes. He was my male idol growing up. My mother's baby brother. He was an uncle the moment he was born.

But it was another uncle that I went to a minor league game with while I was home. Damaschke Field is home to the Oneonta Tigers. His nephew has box seats and it was just the two of us which I thought was pretty cool. Check out the view of the background in the picture where the guys are warming up in the outfield. Oneonta. City of the Hills. It lives up to its name. The Tigers are a single A team in the New York-Penn League. They played Vermont the night I was there and won 7-6 in the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs. For a minor league game, it was pretty exciting. My uncle told me he usually leaves after the 5th inning but he was glad he stayed for this one. He even asked me if I wanted to leave at the end of the 8th to beat the crowd. There were 409 fans in attendance. He's a funny guy.
My cousin, Johnny, his son, has helped coach the Oneonta State Softball program for 18 years. He also does part-time coaching at the Cooperstown All Star Village (CASV). CASV was founded in 2004 and is only open 9 weeks each year. It gives kids aged 10-12 a major league experience through week long tournaments. It is a state-of-the-art facility. And this is what he does when he's not tending duties as quartermaster for the NY State Police. The picture taken of several fields was at the CASV. Unfortunately, I had to buy a disposable camera while I was visiting and the pictures aren't real high quality.

So the big news here is "How to Snag Minor League Baseballs." I say this because Zack Hample (check out the links for Zack on the left side of my home page) wrote a book called "How to Snag Major League Baseballs." He wrote this book in 1999 while he was still in college but it is now out

of print. Zack talks about the different techniques on his blog and he has over 3000 balls collected from 42 stadiums. I just bought his most recent book "Watching Baseball Smarter." He goes to batting practices, he has a glove trick, he wears caps from both teams playing, and knows how to ask for balls in several languages, etc. Unfortunately, I don't have the benefit of his knowledge but I did have an edge. It's not that hard, Zack. At the game I attended, all we had to do was ask the trainer for a ball and it was hand delivered by one of the players to my box seat after it was hit foul of the first base line. Sweet. I coulda wrote a book...

So during a break in the action my uncle tells me about this game he went to in NY to see the Yankees. He brought his binoculars with him but set them down and forgot about them until it was too late. A few months went by and he gets this letter from Poughkeepsie. A women wrote (he had his name and address on the bincoulars) that her husband found them but wouldn't return them. She said that if he ever forgot about them that she would send them back. Incredible. Then a few more months went by and my uncle gets a call from a friend who needs binoculars. He borrows some from a neighbor and goes to visit the friend. This is when he learns that my cousin Johnny wrote the letter and had it mailed from Poughkeepsie. Now that is some funny stuff. Look out MGel and Bigun - you've got competition!