E Discovers the Hose

Sunday's which form the middle day of a three day weekend are a lot of fin. Usually, I wind up lamenting the end/loss of the weekend, but as the middle day of a three day weekend, Sundays are fantastic. Why? I guess it's mental because I know my time off from work isn't over yet. This Labor Day weekend, Sunday was no exception.

The day began in church where we were accompanied by our daughter and our two grandsons--E and Jax. They both love singing the praise songs with the band. Ethan brought a bucket into church with his--a standard beach bucket. We couldn't figure out why, but I offered that he wanted to fill it with God's grace and that seemed to work.

The real fun of the day though came while we were sitting around the pool during the late afternoon--after nap. OK--as an aside, how do you get a three-year old who doesn't want to take a nap to sleep and nap? Answer--you don't. They will outlast and outwit you (sounds like a commercial for Survivor doesn't it?)

Ethan was playing with the hose--taking it to the far side of the pool and pulling it back to him. The good part of this was we had already been swimming and were warming up after jumping in the frigid 75 degree water. As E became more comfortable with the hose he decided to get people wet with it--whereupon I kinked the hose to stop the flow of water. To the best we can remember, he never figured out I had done this.

And now the fun begins. Literally. As E looked into the end of the hose, I unkinked and quickly re-kinked it so water would shoot out--just a shot, not a steady stream. And the laughter began. Full deep belly laughter. We repeated this many times and in many situations--always with laughs. Of course some of the innocent bystanders (Chris) did get wet, mostly it was E who would look into the end of the hose and try to figure out how the water knew when he was looking to shoot out only at him. Never when he pointed the hose at anyone else. A picture would be graeat at this point, but we were all having so much fun playing and laughing with E that no cameras appeared to record the event for posterity.

E repeated looking into the hose in anticipation of that shot of water coming out many, many times. It was truly a highlight to be remembered.

Who lit the afterburners?

Wow--the pace of life has really taken off during the past couple weeks. It went from being relatively manageable to constant motion. I'm not sure what changed--but something certainly did.

I have a lot to update on--including some new wines (which I will review separately) and some of the hard work we've been doing with the family.

The weather, however, takes center stage. With temperatures in the low 60's and high 50's at night guess about the water temperature in the pool (especially since propane is about $3.00 per gallon)--yup, it is COLD. I haven't been in the pool in two weeks--and that is a real pain to me since it is only August (at least for a couple of days). Where'd summer go? I love my pool and laying on a floatie in the afternoon with a cold drink in my hand.

I finally got the repairs to the wall in the bedroom completed and mounted the new (yes new) TV that Chris bought. Oh yeah, and I ran the wires in the wall to protect the beauty of my repair job. Only trouble is, I didn't get the behind the wall wire requirement until the wall was nearly completed. So that made the job a bit tougher. But it looks good.

Coupled with that, we have finally upgraded to HD Directv. That was an experience. Who would have know all the complexities associated with HD service--I guess after two new holes in the concrete basement walls of the house--and three visits by Directv contractors, I do. Now if I only get enough time to actually watch some sports in HD. Oh yeah--and I have more holes to fill in the walls! Yippeee! I think I'm going to get a part time job as a "mudder."

But I love Directv--you know why? Because it is not Comcast! Nuf said.

So we had a wine party at the house a couple weeks back. It was great fun to have some new and old friends over to enjoy a few bottles of wine around the pool on a great August evening. One wine we tasted was so unique that I will review it soon. I can't recommend it for many people--but it will go great with a dark, smoky barbecue.

Well--I'm sure this stream of consciousness probably lost its focus--but then so has life. Somewhere we need to slow things down a bit and find something elusive called the "perfect present" rather than the frenetic future.

Relax, have a seat, and take a sip of that drink you are holding. Read a book just for kicks and reflect on all of the blessings that God has provided. And that DOES include family, grandkids, and friends--just in the right proportions.

Sunday at the Zoo

What a beautiful day it was yesterday, August 17th. I made my first ever trek to the Baltimore (Maryland) Zoo accompanied by the grandsons (a/k/a the dynamic duo of E and Jax), their mother and Chris.

I got to push Jax in the stroller--which really is an RV in disguise. Jax and I had some quality time wandering around looking for the next shade tree--that is until I bored him so much he went to sleep.

I enjoyed the zoo. The shade of the trees made the walk very pleasant. Of course the drive through Baltimore's not so nice side was also interesting, but the zoo is nicely landscaped and the exhibits are well maintained. E and I had fun finding the animals in the enclosures. Seems the zebra had a desire for anonymity and went and hid once we identified him.

The polar bear was very active swimming around her enclosure. She was fun to watch. Finding the arctic fox was fun--he looked liky our cat Louis--a white ball of fluff sleeping in his enclosure.

The African Bird Watering Hole is a unique exhibit and was very enjoyable--although I think E really enjoyed running arounod the outside ofthe enclosure with me chasing him--he even stopped to wait for me when he got "too" far ahead of me,  just to be sure I was still part of the action.

Recommendation: The zoo is a must visit spot while in Baltimore. The walking is easy and although the sun was hot, there are shade trees everywhere. The crowd was light even though it was a Sunday. I'm sorry it took me 13 years to get to the zoo--because as the song says--"it's all happening at the zoo."

Return to the Court and Defeat of the Couch Potato

Ugh! I finally crawled back onto the racquetball court yesterday morning after two weeks of sitting around pretty much doing nothing as I recovered from my medical problem. It was not pretty.

It is amazing how much a body forgets in two weeks about how to make certain shots and how to move--it was a struggle to remind myself how to hold a racquet and how to make certain shots. I mean the really good shots: the roll-outs and the corner kill shots. You have to see them before you take the shot and coming off a recovery the mind is a bit slow and the body a bit uncoordinated so it all doesn't flow together.

Thankfully, the guy I was playing hadn't played in two weeks either and I was competative--even winning both games we played. (We usually play three or four games--that's how bad it was) Although I suffered a strained muscle for my efforts--serves me right for getting sick in the first place.

But, the games were not against him--but rather against the lethargy of my own body. And I am happy to report that lethargy lost! By the end of the second game--strained muscle and all, things were coming back together. But all during that first game I kept wondering exactly why I force myself onto the court at 5:30 AM.

Saturday morning I was able to watch pros play racquetball on TV. (couch potato alert) I deluded myself into believing that I could make some of their shots--which I can, just not with the consistency they do. Pro Open racquetball is a lot different from the much tamer variety I play. The rules are a bit different too.

But I don't have dreams of ever becoming a pro racquetballer. I play just to keep one step ahead of becoming a permanent couch potato. And I can veggie out with the best of them--just ask my wife.

So, tomorrow morning, ugh, I will force myself out onto the court again to keep moving and hopefully regain some of the conditioning I lost over the course of the past couple weeks. And believe me--I really do love it!

Yellowfin Steak & Fish House Review

The Yellowfin Steak & Fish House in Edgewater, Maryland was the chosen location for our anniversary dinner. We selected this restaurant for our very special dinner based upon the recommendation of our daughter and her husband--they had recently celebrated their anniversary there.

Making reservations was a breeze--just do it from the website--nothing could be easier. The location on the water in Edgewood at a marina provides a fabulous view of the river and is a great backdrop for dinner. Ask for a table by the windows (to better enjoy the view). 

Although reservations were easy, parking is at a premium. Be prepared to park on the street leading under the bridge. It is a short walk, but parking in the main lot, which is shared with the marina, is tight.

The facility is pleasant and nicely abuts the water. The service during our meal was superior. We had a reservation, arrived early and were seated immediately on a Saturday night and were lucky enough to get a window seat looking out on the river.

The wine list is sufficient and has a good selection of wines at moderate prices. We chose a Pinot Grigio,  Ecco Domani, to have with our meal since we wanted something light and European to compliment our fish dishes. We were not disappointed.

I chose the Japanese Sea Bass which was excellent. The presentation was especially nice and the entree had a nice light flavor. The hot potatoes and broccoli were done to perfection. Chris chose the Bang Bang Mahi Mahi--the entree again was tasty and nicely presented with good flavor; however the rice was very dry. Her asparagus was excellent, however.

We were treated to a dessert, we told them it was our anniversary and they provided the dessert totally unexpectedly. We also enjoyed coffee after dinner. It was a very nice dinner and very enjoyable.

Recommendation: Definitely a place to visit again. Thoroughly enjoyable meal in a comfortable setting with a dynamic view at reasonable prices.

It's All Happening at the Fair

Friday night at the Howard County Fair was fun and spectacular again this year. The price was right ($5) and going with Nicole and the boys made it all the more fun. Ethan had his face painted to look like a tiger and he was cute. Jackson was all about the sights and the sounds of the fair.

We checked out the livestock to get in touch with our farming roots. I admit, I love the smells of the cow barns as they remind me of growing up in rural Central New York near a lot of dairy farms. It's not a nice smell--just familiar and reminds me of a time in my life when I really didn't worry about tomorrow--I was more in the moment and concerned about the day. But that's the way kids are supposed to be.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching Chris return to her childhood by riding all of the kiddie rides with Ethan. I've been warned that when Ethan is ready for the wild rides that involve hanging upside down or rocketing through the universe at warp speed that he will be my ride-along responsibility--but until then she is happy to do the more tranquil rides. Just don't do a lot of spinning as the chum starts soon after.

Jax though--now that is where the fun will be. He is just itching to be mobile to run circles around his big brother--and big brother doesn't have a clue. Jax watches everything--and figures it out all on his own. He is going to be fast when he finally gets mobile. Look out!

All-in-all it was an enjoyable fair--the Maryland State Fair should be equally as fun.