Monday Musings - September 8, 2014

1. Technically, the season is still summer. I have heard too many people speaking of autumn breezes lately.

2. The NFL season is officially underway, based upon week one results, I am happy the the Orioles are still playing.

Jax on the Bench near the end of the game

3. I went to a youth football game yesterday--Jax was playing in his first organized tackle game. I discovered that this is where football is real. 

4. For those of us old enough to remember, it was on the date in 1974 that President Gerald Ford pardoned disgraced former President Richard Nixon for any crimes committed during his time in office. 

5. There is something comforting about having my dog, Makayla, laying at my feet. Not only that, but she is warm, too!

6. An impromptu dinner out, a horrific rainstorm which left me drenched, and time with family are an interesting way to spend an evening. Thanks P&T.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Walking the Course

Looking to the 9th Green at
Carroll Park Golf Course

I am still trying to understand my newfound interest in golf. 

For now the fourth week in a row, I have played golf on a Sunday morning. My lifetime golf experience now stands at 65 holes and somewhere around two dozen lost balls.

I am finding that golf is a strategic game and that the occasional good shot I make keeps me interested enough to keep trying. I am a morning person and walking a golf course in the morning just after dawn is a lot of fun. 

I love watching the dew dry from the grass and hear the sounds of the world as it wakes. 

And hitting the "small" ball, as I have heard it called, takes a lot of skill and concentration. And luck! Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good. 

I am still learning and with every outing I am learning more about the clubs and how to hit them. Ugh! There is so much to learn.

But walking the course on a quiet morning with the guys is a great way to start a day.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Snow Shovel by the Front Door

Snow Shovel by the Front Door with me in
an Aloha Shirt and Shorts in the
reflection

I was given some good advice from a friend yesterday. 

He imparted some wisdom in an effort to ease my obvious dread of the oncoming dark season and winter. His advice helps me to keep it all in perspective and makes the impending season seem further away.

It was a simple idea--but I like it.

He said that I should get my snow shovel and place it next to the front door. Then, I should touch it every morning on my way out and be happy not to have to use it that day.

How sage is that wisdom?

Thanks, Dick!

You have brightened a darkening corner of the year with a ray of brightness and hope.

A snow shovel not used--is a day that much better!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

September Morning

Now that September has arrived, it seems that summer has decided it had been sleeping on the job. Isn't it funny how September is thought of as more autumn than summer even though it has more summer days?

The temperatures have been warmer--high 80's and even over or almost 90 degrees. Wow! What a change from the cold August nights.

Baseball is heating up as the season enters its final weeks and the hopes of Orioles fans are surging as our team apparently has regained its 1983 form. I am excited to already have post-season tickets to some of the games we hope to host with the prospect of buying more as the reality hopefully arrives.

The warmer temperatures have been welcome. I enjoy them and relish their persistence into next weeks and even until the end of the month. Some of the trees in my yard have already begun to lose their leaves which increases the amount of time I spend on pool maintenance. 

But the pool is warm. That written, my propane company called the other day to inform me that they no longer have a truck with a hose long enough to reach my propane tanks. How did that happen? So I need to pay to move my tanks. Maybe I'll change my propane company. Sadly, there is no natural gas in the neighborhood.

Every September morning that dawns with warm temperatures and the promise of a hot day is a great day. The cool/cold autumn days will be here too soon. And then winter.

Thanks September for giving us the warmth and taste of summer that was missing.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Places not to Vacation in the world

Bonaire: Exotic Vacation Location

Vacations, especially international ones, are exciting but require planning.

Next year Chris and I  are thinking of heading off an exotic place to jointly celebrate birthdays and our anniversary. I was informed that Key West is not exotic!

But where to go? We thought of the Holy Land--but there is a scary war going on there. Nothing like vacationing on the front lines of a  conflict that has been in progress for millenniums. Probably not for us.

Then we thought of all of the other places currently embroiled in war and conflict: 

1. Ukraine-Russia, fortunately not one of our desired destinations. 

2. Syria-Iraq: Again, not on the vacation list

3. Afghanistan: Definitely not going there for a vacation. 

And there are a lot more. I ran across an interesting website: Wars in Progress which follows the strife around the world. The site lists 32 countries engaged in wars or armed conflict. Who knew that Uganda and Turkey were on the list?

An observation--with the exception of the United States being listed for the War on Terrorism, none of the countries listed were in the Western Hemisphere. I think someone must have missed the War on Drugs and the deaths associated with it in Mexico.

After looking at the list, some great destinations still remain free of war an conflict: Australia, Italy, Greece, the Caribbean, Belize, and Costa Rica. I have also heard the Croatia is nice this time of year. 

Well at least the list is narrowed. Now let the planning begin. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Baseball, Rain and Late Nights

Boog's Barbecue at Orioles Park

I had tickets for the Orioles baseball game last evening against the Cincinnati Reds. And I went, despite the dire weather forecast for thunderstorms and rain.

It rained! A lot. 

The game was delayed because of the rain and lightening. 

I enjoyed going to the park and eating dinner at Boog's. Even the walk to and from the stadium was enjoyable. But, because I work and get up early, I could not stay for the restart of the game--I saw two batters, but I enjoyed the experience.

I was reminded that during the 1970's two of the best teams in baseball were the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles defeated the Reds in 1970 to win the World Series, but during the decade it seems that either the Reds or the Orioles were consistently in the World Series when the season ended.

Sun from Behind a Cloud

I wish that baseball could be played earlier in the day. I love mid-day baseball. With the two hour rain delay, the game ended somewhere after midnight--which is just too late on a weeknight. 

While I was waiting for the game to begin, I saw a bright beam of light coming out from behind a cloud--it was unique and I snapped a quick image of it to share. 

A bright spot in an otherwise dark and rainy evening.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Back to Work after the Holiday

Sunrise over the Atlantic from Ocean City

The holiday weekend is over, but the memories remain of getting away and enjoying time at the beach and even getting in 18 holes of golf.

Sometimes I wonder why weekends have to end. I guess it is so that I appreciate them more when they come around again.

Looking out over the Atlantic Ocean on a the first morning of September yesterday was a great way to begin the new month. Even if the month is the last month of summer, I have learned how to appreciate being where I am at the time. 

I have to be careful not to be the kid who is unhappy riding a roller coaster at the amusement park because the day is coming to an end.

Every day is like the roller coaster ride and tomorrow will come soon enough without hastening its arrival.

Today is full enough of joys or sorrows that need to be experienced. 

Carpe Diem.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - September 1, 2014

1. Happy Labor Day! Wow, it's early this year. 

2. Summer is not over--it is just a that Labor Day is today, summer does not end until much later in September.

3. Holiday weekends are the best.

Life on the Beach

4. I have played golf three Sunday's in a row--I'm not sure what that means. I certainly am not that good. But, I know a lot about what I am doing wrong--like even being on the course most of the time.

5. Four days at the beach. What could be better? Oh, yea, living at the beach. 

6. I have not flown a kite in years. It is a lot of fun to fly kites at the beach where the wind is constant. But, as I remember from long ago, reeling in a kite is not nearly as much fun as letting it out to fly on the breeze. 

7. Enjoy your day. Drive safe from wherever you are, and if you are home--be happy.

--Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, Maryland

Boy Eating Chair

Jax Folded in the Chair

I heard the weak cry for help across the room and out on the balcony. There was no panic, just a recurring call for, "Help."

I quickly scanned the area and didn't find anything too seriously out of place--until I realized that the chair folded against the balcony railing had moments before contained Jackson.

It was then that I realized that Jax was trapped in the boy eating chair with no hope of escape.

Jax in the Chair

Fortunately he was pretty good natured about it and allow a few pictures to be taken before he was released. After all, it was pretty funny. 

No panic, just frustration at being the unwelcome center of attention was setting in. 

But it made for a few laughs and some good natured ribbing. 

And then--he was freed.

I don't think he sat in the chair again.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, Maryland

Birds on the Beach

Birds on Ocean City, MD Beach

Watching birds on the beach provides a great diversion. And the birds at Ocean City, Maryland, certainly deserve watching.  Close watching!

I had a great time watching the birds on the beach yesterday. They were everywhere and they were keeping a close watch on us as we were relaxing in the sunshine and listening to the waves crash onto the beach. 

One seagull in particular, deserved to be watched carefully. He had a unique personality and was not afraid to be relatively close to where we had set up on the beach.

He was fun to watch. So much fun, in fact, that I took a video of his efforts to arrange our sunbathing blanket for his own purposes. 

He provided a great diversion and was one of the most interesting things to watch until the beach got so crowded that the birds relocated elsewhere.

Beware the Ocean City seagulls!

-- Bob Doan, writing from Ocean City, Maryland