Monday Musings - October 31, 2016

1. Happy Halloween, it is the last day of October.

2. There is something really fantastic when temperatures hit 80 during the last couple of days of October.

3. Halloween decorations are everywhere in our neighborhood. We got a new projector and now have scary stuff on our garage door.

Saturday Evening at the Fire Pit

4. The best evenings are when we can sit by the fire pit and enjoy Happy Hour. Last evening it rained, but Saturday evening it was perfect. And we still have a few leaves on the trees.

5. Chris and I voted yesterday because we are going to be traveling on Election Day. It feels good to be done with the process. I'm glad that Maryland has early voting.

6. I saw the movie Inferno on Friday night. It is OK. The book was better.

7. Italy had another earthquake yesterday. The strongest to date. They have had three in the past week.

8. The Cubs won game 5 of the World Series. Back to Cleveland for game 6 and then game 7, if needed.

9. Thankfully, the Ravens had the weekend off to recover and I didn't have to suffer through another frustrating football loss.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

October's End

It was a spectacular October Saturday. It started cold, with a temperature of 37, but then it warmed to an enjoyable 70 degrees allowing for a multitude of autumnal activities.

The Grasses Around the Pool are Cut

Chris in Costume

First was the annual cutting of the grasses around the pool. 

Another sign of the approaching winter. The grasses are easier to cut when they are green and I can get them all into my truck for transport to the landfill for recycling into mulch. After the winter, once they have dried and are brown they do not pack together as well and it can take two or more trips. 

The grass cutting project took about three hours from start until I was back home after visiting the landfill. Not too bad. 

After cleaning up and some lunch, it was off to to the annual Halloween party. Chris and I decided to don costumes and enjoy the party. Sadly, we were the only adults who felt the pull of the festivities. 

I can hardly believe that tomorrow is Halloween, and then comes the season of the turkey. I am amazed that living life one-day-at-a-time makes the seasons pass so quickly. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

What Happened to the Time?

As the days grow shorter, I am beginning to have more stress about getting the outside activities accomplished in preparation for the winter.

The cold mornings, this morning it was 37 degrees, do not help either. It takes a while to get warm enough to work outside or to play golf.

Grasses Before Cutting
in the Cold Morning Light

As I was getting a bit stressed the other day about time, I realized something that I already knew:

Everyone gets the same amount of time, every day. It is not something you can increase or decrease. It is all a matter of how we choose to use our daily allocation.

Wow. 

So if I decide to allocate my available hours to playing golf, I have to be content with the things that I am not doing--like cutting the grasses around the pool which is actually this morning's project once the temperatures warm up a bit.

It is no fun to hit a golf ball in temperatures approaching freezing. Just saying. 

So I will allocate my time based upon the weather to get the best possible outcome. That is really the best anyone can hope for.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Election Grind

It is hard to believe, but in a week and a half the election season which began more than two years ago will be finally ended and a new President selected.

Then the process of repairing the brokenness of the country will begin. There is an ominous piece in the NY Times this morning warning of violence if Clinton wins. It just shows the level to which the hate mongering has taken the electorate. 

That is not how our country is supposed to react to the transition of power, but the two leading candidates have made the election too personal. It has become about ego and not about plans and programs for governing our nation.

The assertions that the election is rigged are preposterous. If the American people vote, the numbers will be counted. The election can only be rigged if people don't vote. 

I will likely vote early, so that on election day I don't have to stand in expected lengthy lines to cast my ballot. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Frost on the Pumpkin

Yesterday morning arrived and with it, the first frost of the season. It was a light frost on the windshield of my truck, but it was definitely frost.

Freshly Mowed Late-October Yard

The presence of the first frost of the season changes so many things. It is a visible sign that autumn is slipping into winter and the fast approach of the season of darkness. 

The leaves dropping from the trees surrounding my yard created a blanket on the ground. Another sign of the passing season. I attacked them with my tractor yesterday and for a short while the yard was free of leaves--but the bare branches of the trees are clearly visible in the image I took of the probable last mowing of the year. 

I will likely use the mower to blow the leaves back into the forest as they continue to fall from the trees, but I doubt that the grass will grow much more. 

In honor of the season, I researched the poem by James Whitcomb Riley titled, When the Frost is on the Punkin. I had forgotten that it is written in the colloquial dialect of late-19th century Indiana, which makes it a very interesting read. 

For your enjoyment, here are the last four lines of the first stanza:

O, it’s then’s the times a feller is a-feelin’ at his best, 

With the risin’ sun to greet him from a night of peaceful rest, 

As he leaves the house, bareheaded, and goes out to feed the stock, 

When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock. 

When I reread poems like this one, I realize that in some respects our language has become too homogenized and that we are losing our regional character.

But, the frost is on the pumpkin and the day is getting gone.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

World Series Game 1 Reflection

The end of the baseball campaign is near. Game 1 of the 2016 World Series is in the books and Cleveland definitely looked to be the better team winning the game 6-0.

The defining moment in the game was the 7th inning when the Cubs had the bases loaded with no outs and could not score a run. All evening, the Cleveland pitchers controlled the Chicago batters except for the 7th inning rally. 

I felt the Fox network coverage of the game was barely adequate. The lack of using the pitch tracker for most of the game to document the inconsistent strike and ball calls was frustrating. There were discussions about balls being strikes and the pitch tracker would have helped to show the trends. Fox sports is going to have to turn their game up.

Losing game 1 is not the end of the series. The team that goes up 1-0 in the World Series is the eventual champion about 64 percent of the time. So there is definitely hope that the Cubbies will win. Tonight's game really begins to be important as a team that goes up 2-0 wins the series 80 percent of the time. There is an interesting article titled, World Series Game Situation Winning Probabilities: How Often Do Teams Come Back From Behind? if you want to see the probabilities associated with all of the possibilities.

On a side note, I already have the Orioles Spring Training schedule and am beginning to think about my March trip to Sarasota!

Play Ball!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Las Vegas Images

New York, New York Resort at Night

I had my trusty iPhone with me to document my weekend celebration in Las Vegas and I managed to take some interesting images.

Everything in Vegas seems to be larger than life. The resorts apparently duel to be the most spectacular or outlandish. I stayed in the Excalibur, which is a castle, but New York, New York looks like a miniature version the Big Apple all crushed together. 

TPC Las Vegas

I was very impressed with the stunning scenery surrounding TPC Las Vegas where I played a very enjoyable round of golf. Getting out of the city and away form the casinos and the crowds was a highlight of the trip. Getting to smack the little white ball around the course was an added benefit. It was the first time I had played a desert course and I admit to hitting a couple of balls into the canyons guarding some of the holes.


As I was walking through my resort, I happened upon a gift shop that just screamed Las Vegas--and I had to take an image of the sign. It was just a classic! I actually did not even go into the shop, but I enjoyed the lights of the sign. There were, of course, many more signs in Vegas, but it is a city that never seems to sleep, although at 6AM I could tell that it was slumbering.

Out my Hotel Window
October 24, 2016

My final image is from yesterday morning after a rare rainstorm passed through and made the sunrise special. The sunlight reflecting off the airport runways was especially interesting and the illumination of the hotel down the way made for a visually stimulating shot--and yes, it was right outside my hotel window! I was amazed at how the scene outside my window changed with the rising of the sun and the passing of the day. 

In retrospect it was a great trip and I have to confess that I did gamble. I won $5 while betting $2, so I was ahead for the trip, I guess. I am not a gambler, but I had to play at least one slot machine and I actually played two.

I did find that many of the cliches are true. But there is wholesome fun to be enjoyed, even in Sin City.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - October 24, 2016

TPC Las Vegas
October 22, 2016

1. My long weekend trip is nearly over. All I really have remaining is to travel home. A long day of travel through three time zones.

 2. I played golf at TPC Las Vegas on Saturday, it has some of the most stunning views that I have seen from a golf course. 

3. Vegas really never sleeps.

4. The Presidential election is now only 2 weeks away and early voting has started. America, it is time to make a choice.

5. I am excited that one of the two longest championship droughts in the MLB is about to come to an end. Chicago and Cleveland will make history no matter which team wins. And who would ever have thought we'd see Chief Wahoo in the World Series? 

6. Patrick made a time-lapse video of the sunrise out the hotel window. It is very impressive. He did a great job documenting a great sunrise.

7. A dark spot in imagery of Mars is likely the wreckage of the European Schiaparelli lander. 

8. New York City is close to opening a subway line that has been planned for almost a century! Sometimes miracles happen.

9. It was a difficult day in the NFL yesterday with all of the family favorite teams, that played, losing. The losers include the Ravens, Steelers, and Redskins. The Cowboys were spared because they were on a bye week. The Ravens effort was especially frustrating because they had 12 rushing carries for a total of 6 yards. 

-- Bob Doan, writing from Las Vegas, NV

Bloody Mary Drink-off

Bloody Mary at BWI

I know it seems a bit strange to be writing about Bloody Mary's, but I have seen some interesting interpretations of this breakfast drink during my trip to Las Vegas. 

Let me state right up front, I have NOT personally consumed any of these concoctions, but I have witnessed other members of my group enjoying these drinks.

Hotel Bloody Mary

The first Bloody Mary of the trip was at the airport bar in Baltimore. It was made with everything and contained shrimp, an assortment of veggies, olives, and bacon. The salt around the top of the glass was a nice touch. Sadly, for the people who ordered this beverage, it was delivered only about 15 minutes before we boarded the flight to Las Vegas. 

The second Bloody Mary was even more over the top. It was created at the hotel for members of our group that we met up with in the check-in line. It was astounding and even more over the top than the ones a few hours earlier in Baltimore. It was definitely breakfast and while there was no shrimp, it appeared that a whole side of bacon was included in the glass. 

Bloody Mary at TPC Las Vegas

The final entry in the Bloody Mary competition was at TPC Las Vegas where we played a great round of golf. This was a more classic and, frankly, less appealing version that some of the others; but it was appropriate for drinking from a moving golf cart. 

The winner was the Bloody Mary at the hotel. I may never see one like that again!

-- Bob Doan, writing from Las Vegas, NV 

Out the Hotel Window - Las Vegas

Out the Hotel Window - Afternoon
October 21, 2016

I have experienced two cities that never sleep during the month of October, New York City and now Las Vegas. 

I have two images out my hotel window, one in the early afternoon and one as the shades of the sunset were painting the sky. 

Out the Hotel Window - Evening
October 21, 2016

I have a good view of the airport, similar to when I was in Los Angeles. It is hard to believe the life that happens behind me, in the other direction. 

I spent a lot of time wandering around being amazed at the sheer numbers of people who come to Vegas. It is astounding. And there is a lot of fun to be had--for a price. Everything is very pricey and not the way I remember it from 30 years ago. I had a burger and a beer for lunch yesterday and it cost $40. I'm going to have to be a bit more frugal if I am going to survive the trip with my wallet in tact.

-- Bob Doan, writing from Las Vegas, NV