Congrats to Houston Astros

I stayed up until midnight and watched the Houston Astros win their first ever World Series by defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 in game 7 of the Fall Classic.

Baseball is over for the year. A new champion has been crowned. 

The Astros now leave the group of teams which have never won a World Series. That group is larger than you might think and consists of the San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies. Additionally, the Washington Nationals (formerly the Montreal Expos) and Seattle Mariners have never even appeared in a World Series.

It is hard to believe that a sport which has been around for so many years has 7 teams which have never won a championship. I read that the Astros were formed during 1962.

I am glad that my prediction of a Dodger series victory in six games was wrong. That, after all is why they play the games. 

The off-season can now begin in earnest!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

On to November

Ethan, Jack, Jackson, Lucas

November arrived overnight, but not without some fanfare. 

Finnegan Ready for Halloween

Of course there was the Halloween celebration with scores of kids and adults wandering the neighborhoods in search of treats. Fortunately, there were far more treats than tricks. 

The grandkids and friends got together for their annual costumed walk through the neighborhood. 

Even Finnegan was costumed and ready to meet the neighbors. 

But now it is November--the month of Veteran's Day and Thanksgiving. It dawns on me that it is but one of two months of the year blessed with two holidays. 

Happy November! It is the season of the turkey!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Halloween 2017

Jeremy's Light Wrapped Tree

It is the day of decorations and costumes.

The family will gather tonight for our annual trek through the neighborhood to collect treats from those who participate.

Halloween is the celebration at the beginning of the dark days. Winter is on the horizon, but more importantly the length of daylight is waning significantly day by day. The length of the daylight is 10 hours 32 minutes today. Each successive day is over 2 minutes shorter. There is still more than one hour of daylight to shed each day until the days begin to lengthen during late December. 

Witches with a Cauldron in a Neighbor's Yard

The lights of Halloween are a reminder of the lost summer days as we drive away the darkness that is creeping into our lives. Of course the tales of witches and goblins also provide some excitement as the harvest celebration continues.

Tomorrow begins the season of the turkey!

Be careful out there tonight. I think it is going to be cold and I know it is going to be dark!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - October 30, 2017

1. It is the last Monday of October. Tomorrow is Halloween and then we are onto November. 2017 is racing towards its conclusion.

2. I had to get a new laptop yesterday. Mine would not stay running. 

3. I saw a funny sign on the internet yesterday. I am sure cats would not text back, either.

4. Winners and losers. Winners: Ravens, Cowboys, Steelers, Astros. Losers: Redskins and Penguins.

5. The World Series has become a wild affair. Sadly the games are on too late for me to see the endings, but my prediction will not come true. It is the Astros who can win the series in 6 and not the Dodgers. The Dodgers will have to go to Game 7 to win. And talk about home runs!

6. Rain everywhere saturating everything. Wind blowing. I took the dogs out this morning and was surprised by how loud it was outside with the wind blowing hard through the trees. I wonder how many limbs are down in the yard?

7. Watch out for Trick or Treaters tomorrow. 

Headlines

Republicans, desperate for a win, already face setbacks as they prepare to unveil tax bill this week - The Washington Post

Dread, expectation hang over Washington before Mueller sweep - CNN

Russia Uses Its Oil Giant, Rosneft, as a Foreign Policy Tool - The New York Times

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

"Well, I'm here today because I believe you're right to care about the future. I believe America's future and your future hold promises bigger than the sky and more vast than the galaxies -- if we have faith and if we're true to the values of family, work, and community that have always been America's guiding stars on the path of history." Remarks to High School Students and Citizens in Sterling Heights, Michigan, October 7, 1988

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

The Last Baseball Game

Jackson at Shortstop
October 28, 2017

Yesterday represented the last baseball game of the season for Jackson. 

He has effectively been playing baseball since March and is heading into the off season as a much better player than he was as the season began.

Final Baseball Game of the Season
An Idyllic October Day

Since March, he has become an effective relief pitcher, has hit two grand slam home runs, become a smart baserunner, and can effectively play all infield positions. Yesterday saw him take a slow rolling ball and fire it to first base to get the batter. In March, he would have thrown a "rainbow" ball that never would have made it to first in time.

It is officially the off-season. I am already looking forward to March when we start up again.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Autumn Color Arriving

Color on a Tree in My Yard

I have finally noticed the colors of autumn gracing the leaves of the trees. 

It has been a mostly colorless autumn. Many of the leaves have fallen from the trees around my yard, but they just turned brown and fell to the ground.

Within the past few days, however, the trees which still have leaves have finally begun donning their autumnal garb. As can be seen from the photo though, many of the leaves have already fallen without providing the much anticipated autumn color.

It is a different autumn. September and October have been two of the warmest months of their kind in memory. I think September was warmer than August.

Perhaps the winter will be warmer and produce more rain than snow! I can hope, right?

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Halloween Decorations

The House Two Doors Up

My neighborhood really gets into Halloween decorations. 

Most of the houses have added decorations to their entrances responding to the festive nature of the season. 

One house, this year, has added a 12 foot dragon. But the winning neighborhood home is two doors away--they have created an entire Halloween environment. It is pretty impressive.

I am not a huge Halloween fan, but I do enjoy looking at the decorations. They become more creative and the inflatable decorations are a lot of fun to look at for their complexity and size.

Happy Halloween. It is going to be cold!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Memory Problems

It is a computer in crisis or a crisis with my computer? It is hard to say, but my laptop decided to cease working last evening.

I did get it to boot this morning, however, it is not working very well at all. 

I believe there may be a memory problem. 

I too, have a memory problem. I can't seem to remember half of the things that I need to remember. I am not a lucky as being able to swap out some memory and get things going in the right direction again.

So, I am writing my blog on Chris' laptop this morning while mine decides whether to boot or not.

It is making a valiant, albeit slow, effort to start up and allow me access to my files. 

Chris is going to be unhappy when she discovers I used her laptop. I'm sure I messed up some setting.

Losing memory is a bad thing, atleast they can be replaced in computers. Me? I just have to work harder to remember the important stuff nd write down the other stuff.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD 

Growing the Wood Pile

Wood in the Drive Waiting to be Stacked

It is the time of year when preparing for the expected cold days takes precedence. 

The Growing Wood Pile

While not like some homes where the primary winter warmth comes from burning wood, we do enjoy a hot fire in the fireplace to remove the chill from the family room. Call it supplemental heat.

Chris and I had a half cord of hardwood delivered on Monday. That is about all the wood we use during a season. I know that real wood burning homes may use up to 5 or more cords of wood. 

It only took me about two hours to move the wood from where it was dumped in the driveway to the growing wood pile. 

I was getting kinda tired at the end.

Getting more ready for winter!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Season of the Gourd

Chris and the Gourd

It is the season of the gourd.

Last evening we were in Annapolis meeting friends for Happy Hour and dinner and came upon on oversized gourd. 

Laura, D, and Chris

It was a big, deformed pumpkin. 

It was positioned next to our table at the restaurant. We went to Davis's Pub in Eastport, near Annapolis. 

It is hard to believe that we sat outside for dinner near the water in Annapolis on the 23rd of October. The weather is unseasonably warm. 

It was fun to gather together with our "boat people" friends as they traveled through the area and towards the south for the winter. There is something about living on a boat that appeals to me, right up until I get to sit next to my fire pit or swim in my pool.

We all have found places and lifestyles that we are happy living. And it is fantastic that we can gather twice per year to celebrate life and friendships.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD