Sunshine and Warmth

I've been sitting on the patio deck in the sun all morning at my sister's house trying to convince myself that returning to the frozen wastelands of the north is something I have to do despite not wanting to do it at all.

It is 41 degrees in Elkridge and 63 degrees here in Fulshear, Texas. And in the sun it is a lot warmer.

It is so nice not to have to bundle up excessively just to go outside.

The sky is blue and clear--the sun is warm.

I was looking out across the yard into the greening trees which are budding in response to the warm weather wondering how many more weeks of winter that woodlands weather forecaster from PA forecast for us.

It sure can't be too many more though.

We need to enjoy where we are and prepare for where we are going warmed by the taste of the warming trends which will soon be upon us.

Sunny and Warm

A weekend away from the snow and cold is awesome.

Yes it is. So the travel complications of yesterday were definitely worthwhile. I am sitting outside in the sun in a shirt not encumbered by layers of heavy coats and clothing.

I am looking into the future as springtime is beginning to arrive all around me and it is not a dream. It is real.

The sun is warm. The breeze is cool and I am thoroughly enjoying the respite from Maryland.

Can tell its early springtime because the trees are still without leaves, but I can see the light green hue of new leaf growth on some of them.

Despite the snow I left behind in Maryland, I know we are only a few short weeks behind what I am enjoying here in Texas. I have seen the robins already at home, although it seems as if they never left.

The warmth of the sun is intoxicating. I wish I could get a tan, but I will settle for the warmth on my face.

Bob Doan
Elkridge, MD
Sent from My Blackberry

Flexibility: The Joy of Flying

The phone rang last evening about 9pm as we were watching a movie during the final stages of packing in preparation for heading off to Houston. Our flight was canceled.

And so it began. What to do? Bag the trip? But we really wanted to go.

So I called Southwest since the online website was of no help. I heard the recording that there was between a one and one-and-a-half hour wait to speak to a representative. In for a penny, in for a pound I thought as I put the phone on speaker and settled down for the long haul.

Surprisingly, after about 10 minutes I was able to talk to someone who was most helpful in rebooking us. Except that we would have to fly out of Dulles--an hour drive away and a 0725am flight all meaning about a 0415am departure. You do the math. Ugh.

But here I am sitting on my flight to Chicago to connect to a flight for Houston. All by 0800am.

The sun is shining up here at 35000 feet and the ride is smooth. And we are on our way.

Flexibility. The ability to overcome, change plans, and turn lemons into lemonade. That never say die attitude has worked for me a lot. Even when I play racquetball and am losing 14-1 I never quit. I only need one point at a time. Today we only need one flight at a time.

So despite my initial thought of just canceling, we are on our way. Whether all of the crazy connections we try to pull off will work still remains to be seen. But at least we are still in the game and not sulking on the sidelines.

It's 4th down and 99 yards to go for the win with only seconds left on the clock. Put me in coach-we can do it!

See you in Houston for wine this afternoon!


Bob Doan
Elkridge, MD
Sent from My Blackberry

Snow fizzler and Olympic Hockey

I woke up this morning anticipating the worst weather possible--and at a minimum having to shovel the driveway.

But it seems that Maryland was spared, so far, and places like Upstate NY are going to get hammered as a result.

Frankly--we deserved the break. I think we have enough snow, although much of it is about gone.

On to other stuff though---

Being the huge hockey fan that I am, I just have to make a comment about last nights Canadian blow out of the Russian hockey team. Wow! Did someone forget to tell the Russians what time the game started?

I'm really hoping that the gold medal game is US vs Canada in a rematch! Although the US team did not look all that good against Switzerland, remember that the Swiss team took the Canadians to a shoot out when they played. And the US had to play the Swiss team twice.

But I'm beginning to look ahead a bit I guess. First up for the US team to get to the gold medal round is going to be the Fins who I think were the number three seed entering the tournament after Russia and Canada.

What are we all going to do after the Olympics?

Oh yeah--it's baseball season and the Spring Training games will be getting into full swing. AND there are six more weeks to the regular hockey season followed by three months of playoffs before the Penguins are crowned back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions!

And flowers and blossoms and grass to mow and pools to open. Soon!

Snow and Panic

And so the regional panic of the record setting snowfall continues today.

It is expected to snow later this evening and there is panic in the streets as people rush to the stores to obtain supplies in case the storm changes and smashes us with feet instead of inches of snow.

I have to admit--my new cat is safely in the garage isolated form this terrible forecast.

In jeopardy--my weekend trip to warmer climates: Houston for the biggest birthday bash ever thrown in the family!!

Will Southwest cancel my flight on Friday?

Will I get a refund if they do, or just a credit?

Why is this so hard?

And yet the snow (from inches to feet) is still coming and the frustrating thing is that we hope for the best, but must plan for the worst!

My question--will this winter ever end and let us get on with the rest of our lives? I want to go out and dig in my gardens and see the crocus and daffodils get us on the path of springtime.

Around the Sunday Dinner Table

Of all of the really cool things that we do as a family, one of the coolest is having Sunday dinner together. It seems that we all get together many Sunday's to celebrate family and life.

Last Sunday, we gathered around the dinner table and it was really special because Mom and Dad were there and all of the family was there--all of the sons, and daughters and grandsons (we haven't any grand daughters, yet). It is rare that "everyone" is there and I wondered about how we all happened to be in that place at the same time.

But as I looked around the table and listened to the myriad of conversations, I realized that I was blessed. And that we all were blessed.

Four generations sat around that table--and were together for an all too short afternoon.

Yes--it was loud and sometimes frustrating. But the memory of it is good.

It was truly special.

So was the pasta that Chris made--it was all gone by the end of dinner and we usually have leftovers for lunch!

Azul 17 - Restaurant Review

Saturday night we wanted to go out to dinner to some place different. So we spun up the I-pod application for places to eat and decided on Mexican and then came upon Azul 17. A place in Columbia that we had never heard of, much less visited.

This place is not to be missed. It bills itself as a Mexican cuisine and tequila lounge---and it truly is.

The food was upscale and well prepared. The service was fantastic and the atmosphere was not your classic Mexican taco-bar dive. Azul-17 truly is a nice place to take friends and visitors for a true dining experience. The atmosphere is very professional and elegant and the service was outstanding.

The restaurant is located off Snowden river Parkway in Columbia is a small plaza with somewhat limited parking. But it is well worth the effort to go there.

Before dinner, we had the guacamole made at the table. It was very tasty and spiced exactly the way we desired it to be. For dinner I enjoyed the Carnitas Patria which is listed as consisting of roasted pork sautéed until crispy with a trio of bell peppers & onions served with boniato mash over a black bean chorizo broth. It was fabulous and served in a most attractive manner.

The margarita that Chris has with her dinner was equally fabulous and one of the smoothest margaritas that I have tasted.

RECOMMENDATION: This is a place to experience and enjoy on multiple occasions. I will be going back for more, soon!

Monday Musings - February 22, 2010

1. The snow on the ground remains and it is really keeping us all inside. Look out springtime when the snow begins to melt. How can it still be hanging around?

2. The family wanted a ride in my car today--so we did a lot of riding around. The funniest was when the boys wanted to ride with the top down in the 48 degree weather. We got some pretty funny looks.

3. Makayla loves it when Ben comes over. She sleeps really well after playing hard.

4. Two small boys can really turn a lot of buttons in a car when left unattended.

5. As we sat at the table Sunday, it was really cool that we had four generations in attendance. That does not happen very often. And it was really cool to have everyone around the table.

6. The Olympics are a lot of fun to watch--so many people showcasing their years of dedication and training. And the US team is doing very well, too.

7. Hockey has become such an international sport I don't know whether to root for the U.S. team, the Canadian team, or the Russian team--there are Penguins on all of them! Alright, I'm not going to root for the Russians--no way, no how! And as it turns out--no matter who is on the ice when Team USA is out there--I'm rooting for team USA--U-S-A, U-S-A. BTW, it must have worked because the Team USA upset Team Canada 5-3!

8. The entire region is rejoicing that the expected storm on Monday is going to be rain and not snow! Just say no, to snow!

9. I am still amazed by the thought that in about 60 days or so, I will be opening the pool for the season! Mmmmm--the thought of lounging on a floatie with a beer in my hand just warms me all the way to my toes.

10. BTW--Baseball Spring training is underway. They are not bothered by the snow.

Just say no to snow

I called for Aloha Friday at work on Friday. Turns out I was pretty much alone in wearing an aloha shirt.

Oh well it made me a bit warmer.

I did hear a humorous story about another guy who wore a very bright aloha shirt . He was asked about it, and responded: "Just say no, to snow!"

It is all about the state of mind.

Even with the threat of more snow on the way--we need to remember that how we respond to what is going on around us is something that we can control.

So despite the snow--we can choose not to get in that snowbound state of mind.

So from a practical standpoint--even though the snow may be falling from the sky faster that we can even imagine, we can choose not to let it drive us crazy.

Before Cell Phones--How Did We Ever Do It?

A not so amusing return to life before cell phones (B.C.?) occurred in our family the other evening.

It reminded me how dependent we are on these little boxes that I could only dream of having when I was reading Dick Tracy comics as a kid. My how science fiction has become reality. And are we ever hooked!

I was at home, beginning work on the taxes (yes, it is tax season) when the home phone rings--it is Chris with an immediate invite to dinner at a restaurant in the mall with her, Nicole and the boys. So I quickly clean up the tax mess and charge out the door--forgetting the cell phone. Without knowing it, I hd traveled through a time warp into the days B.C.

And boy, did I pay for that.

I got stuck in rush hour traffic and wanted to call Chris to tell her--that is when I realized I was without the critical piece of technology which keeps us all in touch. I worried, but continued on my journey. After all--how difficult could this be--we were meeting at a known place.

Yeah!

I arrived at the mall and jockeyed for a parking place. Speeding into the the restaurant, I told the greeters that I was meeting someone and sped past--knowing that I was late.

Guess what I found upon searching the whole place? Chris, Nicole and the boys were NOT there! What happened I wondered. If only I had my cell to call them. But no, I was stuck in time B.C.

I waited a bit and wandered to the last known location where they had been--when Chris had called. Not there!

I wandered around a bit looking for them and began wondering if something had happened and plans had changed or if the boys were too tired to go out or something. All good questions--but with no way to obtain an answer.

Ugh! So I got a bit upset--at myself, at Chris, at the situation, at life, at traffic, at mall parking, at my truck (because I still can't drive my new cat because of the weather).

I decided the only good play was to return home to find the answers. In this case--home is about a 10 minute drive. In traffic--15 minutes.

So off I sped.

My blood pressure was rising to stroke levels because of the situation. I was B.C. in a big way.

As I returned home and walked through the door--the phone was ringing. It was Chris--she said--"where are you? We are at the restaurant." I know I unleashed a string of fairly vile words at that point because the phone went silent--I think I was burning out a transistor or a capacitor or something.

Because we've been married almost 35 years--Chris waited for the fire storm of emotion and frustration to subside a bit and calmly reinvited me to dinner with the words--"so what do you want to do?"

I was hungry by now. I decided to return to the mall for dinner--with my cell. I didn't want to be in the time of B.C. anymore.

I hopped back into my truck and realized that since they were at the restaurant, they would be waiting to order--and with two smallish children--that was problematic. So I grabbed my cell and called my order in to Chris. My beer was waiting for me when I got there and dinner was served with everyone else's.

I had a great dinner sitting next to my best bud-Jax. Much more relaxed now that I was back in the present day with my cell in my pocket--and fully connected to the world and my life.

I never want to be in the time B.C. again! I don't know how we ever did it.

And back then we only had one car, too! But that is a story for a different day.