Breaking News

I have always wanted to be on  the front lines of breaking news, and yesterday I was. OK, I was within about three miles of the breaking news.

It is not often that I spy black smoke wafting up over hotels on the beach. I could tell there was oil involved from the black smoke.

We heard sirens racing down the main street of Ocean City and wondered what the problem could have been.

It turns out that one of the beach trams burned in the parking lot. We drove by it later in the day, but I was too slow to take pictures of it.

I do have these eerie shots of black smoke rising over the beach with uncaring beach goers playing in the foreground.

Hmmm!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - May 27, 2013

1. I hope you are enjoying your Memorial Day Weekend. Today is, however, Memorial Day. I provide the following link for you to reflect on the holiday. http://www.usmemorialday.org

2. We returned back from the beach Sunday evening to avoid the Memorial Day traffic crush. Last year it took five hours to drive home. Last evening, about 2 and a half hours.

3. My Memorial Day plans include wood flooring.

4. I read an interesting article that shows how out of touch politicians are with the electorate. California, it seems, has a huge budget surplus and they don't know what to to with it. They are looking at spending it on a lot of programs. My thought? Return it to the tax payers.

5. Despite complaining that the daily temperatures are not warm enough, I do not want to appear ungrateful that at least the trees are in full leaf and we are not still in the grip of winter.

6. The pool is open! The temperatures are a bit cool, but I will be in the pool before the end of the day.

7. If I attempt to save a horseshoe crab from being stranded on the beach, does it know it? I think I returned three who survived to to ocean yesterday

8. Storms, flowers, and gardening. The rhythm of summer.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Crazies in the Bar

It was adult night out last evening, and we frequented a watering hole near the condo so that we didn't have to drive. We actually went to two such establishments and engaged in deep conversations that no one remembers this morning.

But, one thing I do remember is a guy named David who walked up and introduced himself and proceeded to regale us with stories and discussion. He was at the same time a former college basketball player, a runner, an entrepreneur, a ranked tennis player and a single guy on the prowl. Staying with him through the twists and turns of his story was difficult because the truth seemed to shift often as each of our queries probed deeper.

As we probed the part about being a West Virginia college basketball player, it turned out that he played fora division three school and not WVU.

Much like online personas, it seems that being out in a bar people can assume whatever fantasy they desire with little regard for reality.

Myself? I'm still me, regardless of how much fun I'm having.

I guess that is why I don't get excited about pub crawling, I don't appreciate the crazies in the bars.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, MD

Ocean City Beach on Memorial Day Weekend

This image says I all. The beach is deserted when normally the sand is covered by humans soaking up hot sun and surf. The smell of suntan lotion lingering in the air is almost oppressive.

Except today with the temperature on the beach a warm 52 degrees, if I were a penguin. The beach is deserted.

That written, I did walk the beach in shirts and two shirts topped by a warm hoodie.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, MD

Cold Beach Day

Being at the beach is awesome. I am sitting looking out the window at the ocean in the morning light. The day is dawning beautiful. But cold.



Still, it is the beach and the ocean and I am in my Memorial Weekend escape mode.

I have not been a huge fan of Ocean City is the past, but lately I have found ways to beat the traffic and the crowds.

Cold weather and rain does put a damper on the crowds.

Memorial Weekend is supposed to be hot as the first holiday of summer. This one is definitely a fizzler in terms of heat index and water activities.

But fun is something we make, not something we experience. Fun and enjoyment I how we approach a problem or situation and not necessarily the outcome alone.

And so, this is going to be a fantastic weekend. I many not sit and bake on the beach, but I will make great memories.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, MD

Lettuce in the Bread Box

Why was the lettuce in the bread box? We all know where it really goes, right? But somedays, it just doean't make it to the right place. Somedays, I don't make it to the right place in my mind.

It is a sign of an overworked, overtired, cleaning the kitchen after lunch too fast to either get out the door or onto the next project.

I'm not too sure the lettuce appreciated being placed in the bread box--it was all limp and wilted. A sign of our times, I guess.

I wonder what else can happen when the lettuce is placed in the breadbox? Are keys lost, purses misplaced, and cars locked with the keys inside? Can distracted fingers become targets for sharp knives?

I think so.

The remedy?

Remember the old adage, "Haste makes waste." Work in the moment. Be aware.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Reflections on a Glass of Wine

At the end of the day, especially after an extremely trying and busy day, I am amazed a how a glass of wine can cause the weight of the day to melt away.

Sipping and appreciating a glass of wine is an art form  and settles the mind. Reviewing the clarity, the color, the "nose," the flavors and the finish cause the mind to refocus on the glass and not the troubles of the day.

Unlike beer, which I often drink very quickly and be left wondering what it was I just consumed, good wine causes me to pause and appreciate something other than the troubles of the day.

Last evening, after working for another few hours on the flooring project, the wine of choice was Educated Guess Cabernet Sauvignon. An easy drinking and enjoyable wine which helps the troubles of the day melt away as I consider the  characteristics of the complex liquid in my glass. It was, of course, made better by the way the Orioles were beating the unnamed team from the north on the field at Camden Yards.

I highly recommend a glass to end the day.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Springtime Fragrances on the Wind--An Allergist success Story

A few weeks ago I was suffering through one of the most ferocious allergy attacks that I have ever had. I was a mess for more than two weeks and the prospect of being outdoors was not something I looked forward to for long periods of time.

That, thankfully, has changed.

I am over the springtime attack and am enjoying the fragrances on the breeze.

Black locust is one that is fully in bloom right now and also one of my favorites. I smelled the sweet fragrance before I even realize that the trees around my house were fully in bloom. I love those trees because they remind me of my childhood where our house was surrounded by these tall trees. And then there is honeysuckle which I also noticed yesterday along with the smell of fresh mowed grass which portends the arrival of summertime.

The world is alive with smells--many of them sweet and appealing, but some, not so.

And I am enjoying them this year, again.

-- Bob Doan, Ellridge, MD

As Memorial Day Approaches, Reflection

Standing on Jupiter Beach Dreaming

I am amazed that the year has passed so swiftly and that Memorial Day is this weekend. Summertime is almost here.

I have noticed that the sky is brighter when I drive to the club for my early morning racquetball thrashing, almost bright enough on clear days to remind me that the solstice is only about a month away and then things will begin winding down for the last half of the year.

Visions of the beach are creeping into my daily thoughts--both for the coming weekend and for my summer get away. The smell of the ocean, the sound of the waves, the feel of the salt water on my skin for the first time since last summer.

It begins this weekend.

Of course the wood floors still need to be finished. The lawn is too long. Then there is the pool and maintenance and maybe even swimming in it sometime soon.

I wonder what my big summertime project will be? Oh yeah, staining the deck that we reconstructed last year.

I'm doing a lot of wood related projects it seems. But I am blessed with the tools to do these projects.

Patrick remarked, last evening as he was helping with the floors, that working with his hands was one of the most satisfying things that he did. I have to agree.  There is a satisfaction that comes form building, whether a sand castle on the beach with grandsons or a deck, or tables, or even new floors. The process of problem solving, creating, and building is very satisfying and provides respite from the cerebral pursuits of my daily life.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - May 20, 2013

1. I didn't travel anywhere this weekend--I was inside working on floors which are not done.

2. Hard work is contagious. Or maybe it is just sick.

3. Why do I work harder at home than at work?

4. The Orioles are definitely in a low place right now.  They have lost five in a row.

5. It is hard to type with a sore finger! I just took a huge sliver out of the end on one of my typing fingers.

6. Ever notice that when the humidity is up, it seems hotted on cooler days?

7. My pool has been open three weeks now and except for my toes--no one has chanced the frigid waters.

8. Next weekend is Memorial Day. Wow, where is the year going?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD