Birthday

Thanks to all who provided greetings for my birthday. It is overwhelming to get greetings form so many people. I remember that in the olden days we would rush to the mail box for greetings and now we go to Facebook. 

I cannot believe that I am another year older--I hope I have the mental capacity to remember my new age when asked--whatever it is.

I have been asked about retirement and I think the end of the daily work rodeo is forming out on the horizon. It is still in the distance, but I have begun to get ready for the day when I no longer report to work promptly at 0700--but not yet. 

What will life after retirement look like? 

I am still looking for that answer. 

Prostate Cancer Awareness Ribbon

From seeing my retired friends, I know that there is life after retirement, but I am not too sure what it is at this point. 

But this birthday reminds me that the year past was a traumatic year. I went through 44 prostate cancer treatments starting right after my last birthday and have been recovering marvelously since then. September is, after all,  prostate cancer awareness month.  Chris and I bought a condo in Florida--but did not go on a cruise, although we recently went to Hawaii. But most importantly, we have spent time with family. 

A wise man once told me that after I retire and leave the organization where I work that people will quickly forget what I did there, but my family will never forget the times we spent together and the times we spent apart. 

I have had both times with and apart from my family.  Last evening was special because I was able to gather with my whole family--minus one, to celebrate.

Let the next year begin.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD 

Craziness in D.C.

The back and forth summer of jockeying by the President and the Congress has continues into autumn and the wheels are threatening to come off the country. My minds is reeling from all of the activity. 

Wow it has been a wild week! Or is that a month? Possibly a wild year? Maybe two-and-a-half wild years?

Accusations. Charges. Counter-claims. Whistle-blowers. Indignation. Ukraine? Elections.

And then there is the impeachment probe being initiated in the House. More dysfunction at work. 

Is anyone governing the country? Managing foreign policy? Ensuring Domestic tranquility? 

Who is in charge at The White House? 

Will there be another government shutdown as early as Tuesday? 

Is anyone in charge anymore?

Have our leaders lost sight of their primary mission?


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Autumn Arriving

Autumn Evening
Elkridge, MD
September 24, 2019

Last evening the weather changed and I felt Autumn in the air. The temperatures were below 80 and the humidity finally dropped. Chris and I sat outside under a cyan sky sipping the white wine of summer past and enjoying the moderate temperatures. Although we were afflicted by hordes of gnats.

Sitting outside as the twilight fell, I noticed that autumn colors were beginning to make their way into the trees. The dry weather has meant that many leaves are already falling and are  covering my yard. But, we recently had the yard aerated and over-seeded  meaning we are watering right now trying to get grass germinated and growing before the warm weather departs. 

What we do to try and enjoy good lawns, so that we can mow them. With Autumn arriving, the end of the lawn care season is in sight, just as the pool season has likewise ended. 

It is time to begin to make ready for the dark season. We retrieved the Halloween decorations from the attic last evening to begin to make ready for the season of goblins and ghouls! October is getting close! Soon there will be frost on the pumpkins. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

October Baseball

Major league baseball teams dream of playing October games because that means they are in the playoffs with a chance to play and win the World Series. 

The Orioles will not be playing in October this year. They are 51-106 .325 with five games remaining. They have bested the record of the 2018 Orioles who only won 47 games--but to say that there is improvement is searching for positives among the thorns. Last night they lost a 15 inning game 11-10 by virtue of a walk-off homer to the Blue Jays. They have two more games in Toronto and then it is off to Boston for the final three games of the season.

Practice 
GORC  Cooperstown 2020 Wildcats 12U
September 23, 2019

As for meaningful October games. the GORC  Cooperstown 2020 Wildcats 12U team will be playing the entire month. Yes, it is Fall Ball and while the normal autumn sports are being played, there will still be baseball to fill the void left by the Orioles departure. 

The team has played two games already, both losses--but close losses: 5-2, 8-6. There is a doubleheader on Saturday in La Plata against the Southern Maryland Senators that promises to be interesting. The Senators are one of the best teams in the area and it should be a true test for the team. And the baseball season continues even as the Orioles lick their wounds and try to figure out how not to lose 100 games or more next season. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - September 23, 2019

1. Summer slipped away and Autumn began while I was sleeping. The leaves falling on my yard are now properly aligned to the season.

2. Returning home after being away has been a bit of a whirlwind with parties and football. And now it is back to our regularly scheduled life.

Finn and Riordin Sleeping
Elkridge, MD
September 22, 2019

3. Buddies sleeping together in a sunbeam who had been reunited after a week apart. They were cute laying there stroking the same pose. 

4. Family NFL report: 

    Ravens lost to Chiefs 28-33
    Steelers lost to 49ers 20-24
    Cowboys defeated the Dolphins 31-6
    Redskins meet the Bears tonight

Spider in the Bushes
Black and Yellow Garden Spider
Odenton, MD
September 22, 2019

5. There was this huge spider. It was in a bush outside of Nicole's house and it made for a great image. It did not seem to mind the attention it received. 

6. It is amazing how quickly Chris and I can unpack--we had everything unpacked and the first load in the wash and were out the door for a birthday party just an hour-and-a-half after arriving home on Saturday.

7. With the ending of September on Monday next week, the progression towards winter will begin unabated. At least we are still playing baseball until November. 

8. Today in History. On September 23, 1875, Billy the Kid is arrested for the first time after stealing a basket of laundry. He later broke out of jail and roamed the American West, eventually earning a reputation as an outlaw and murderer and a rap sheet that allegedly included 21 murders.

The exact details of Billy the Kid’s birth are unknown, other than his name, William Henry McCarty. He was probably born sometime between 1859 and 1861, in Indiana or New York. As a child, he had no relationship with his father and moved around with his family, living in Indiana, Kansas, Colorado and Silver City, New Mexico. His mother died in 1874 and Billy the Kid—who went by a variety of names throughout his life, including Kid Antrim and William Bonney—turned to crime soon afterward.

Headlines

Hong Kong Police Posed as Protesters, Launching a Bloody CrackdownHong Kong Police Posed as Protesters, -New York Times

36 Hours in Albuquerque - The New York Times

Iran resists sanctions, U.S. is 'desperate,' Rouhani says - Reuters

Five civilians killed in air strikes by Saudi-led coalition in Yemen: TV - Reuters

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

All my life I've seen that when people have freedom and a vision, when they have the courage and the opportunity to work hard, and when people believe in the power of faith and hope, they can accomplish great things.
  -- Remarks at a Question-and-Answer Session at St. Agatha High School in Detroit, Michigan, October 10, 1984


-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Home at Last

The view out my back door window is familiar. 

Wailea Beach Sunset, Maui
September 19, 2019

It is good to be home at the completion of the trip and I am ready to get back into the things of my life--including work, baseball, and household chores.

But the memories of the trip are fresh and even though the trip home was long and seemingly endless, I feel pretty good as this morning dawns and am ready to face the challenges that the early autumn is presenting. 

Lighting the Tiki Torches
Wailea Beach, Maui
September 19, 2019

Speaking of which, Autumn begins tomorrow morning at 3:50 AM EDT. 

The trip home was much longer than it needed to be, but that is the way we were routed. Sometimes I wish that Southwest would play well with others and I could have changed airlines in Denver and arrived home about three hours sooner than we did. As it was, we arriver at the airport promptly at 4:20 PM after leaving Maui the night before at 8 PM. Even by subtracting the six hour time change, that is still almost 14.3 hours of travel! And after being up all day, it made for a very long travel experience.

But we are back!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Most of the Way Home

Post-conference Reception
Wailea, Maui
September 20, 2019

I watched the sun rise this morning, but I was bleary-eyed because I had just landed in Denver. Those of us who traverse time zones while traveling know that it can be somewhat disorienting to take off from one place at 8PM at night and wake to the rising sun some five hours later in a different time zone. It seems like the Zombie Apocalypse  has arrived. 

Wailea, Maui Beach
September 16, 2019

Yesterday I enjoyed Maui and today I'm stuck with an incredibly long Denver layover waiting to get back to Baltimore. 

The departure from Maui was smooth and we were treated to a great end of conference party to send us off on our way. We left the reception, loaded luggage in the rental and headed for the airport. 

Arrival at Denver from Maui, Boeing 777
September 21. 2019

I will miss sitting with Chris on our balcony enjoying the rising sun and looking over the small beach that we would see from our room. We enjoyed the waves crashing on the beach and the sounds of the birds as the awakened for the day. 

We enjoyed the open air lobby of the hotel and restaurants, although the air did become very heavy at times. Chris tested her camera skills on the beach Friday by taking some spectacular images of the waves crashing on the rocks. 

I may be able to use some of them in the blog later.

For now, we are waiting--waiting, and waiting. Soon, though, we will be winging our way home and Maui will be memories and images.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Denver International Airport, Denver, CO

Atop the Mountain

From about 9000' Elevation
Haleakala, Hawaii
September 19, 2019

Mountains are sacred to the Hawaiians. Today I was honored to venture to the top of Haleakala, an extinct volcano, for a tour and discussions. While there I was able to pay my respects to the Hawaiian peoples. From Wikipedia I learned, early Hawaiians applied the name Haleakalā ("house of the sun") to the general mountain. Haleakalā is also the name of a peak on the southwestern edge of Kaupō Gap. In Hawaiian folklore, the depression (crater) at the summit of Haleakalā was home to the grandmother of the demigod Māui. According to the legend, Māui's grandmother helped him capture the sun and force it to slow its journey across the sky in order to lengthen the day.

Haleakala Crater
Maui, Hawaii
September 19, 2019

The journey up the mountain was long and the road wound around many hairpin turns going from sea level to 10,000 feet. I witnessed the changes of ecosystems along the way from the lush tropical trees and plants at the base, through the farmlands and pastures, through deciduous forests, and then pine forests, and finally scrub tundra before giving way to the barren landscape of the summit and the crater. It was very stark there, but I was not on a pleasure trip, I was there for business and could not spend much time viewing the scenery--such as it was. 

It was another beautiful Maui day. Tomorrow? Travel begins again as we journey home.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Palm Tree at Night

Palm Tree at Night
Wailea, Maui
September 18, 2019

Chris and I walked along the ocean front last evening and found a place to sit and look out into the blackness. The surf was pounding the shore with a regular rhythmic sound and the stars were shining brightly above us. We confirmed the location of Jupiter with the assistance of an app on my cell phone. 

As we were laying there, on the bench looking at the stars, I decided, with the encouragement from Chris, to take an image of the palm tree stretching up into the night sky. There were stars in the sky and ti was a memorable scene. There was maybe too much ground light. 

I turned on the flash to get a better picture, but the lack of light meant the scene was recorded in a grainy fashion, but the palm tree towered above us as we marveled at the night sky.

And so the scene was captured.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Wailea, Maui 

Maui on my Mind

Beach Near our Hotel
Wailea, Maui
September 14, 2019

Maui is quite a place. It is paradise and it is a working place. 

Over the past few days, Chris and I have walked the beaches and checked out the natural wildlife. 

Snail
Wailea, Maui
September 14, 2019

The local beach is beautiful. It is surrounded by rocks and has red sand. In the morning, it is a joy to behold in the dawn's light. Like the first morning that we were here. That written, I have been on the road a week now, having left last Wednesday, I think I am ready to go home. But, we have a few more days and then a long trip back to Maryland. 

Maui is beautiful. We had a fantastic welcome reception for the conference this evening. The sky was beautiful and the sunset was stunning.


-- Bob Doan, Writing from Wailea, Maui