Monday Musings - April 30, 2018

View from the 18th Tee Box
Timbers at Troy
April 29, 2018

1. It is the last day of April. May begins tomorrow.

2. It is hard to play golf when the temperature is falling from the 50's to the mid-40's.

Trees Rocking the Green in the Neighborhood
April 29, 2018

3. The Orioles managed a win yesterday! They have tied September 2017 for the number of wins during a month at 7. Ugh! They have won two of the last three, however!

4. The trees are finally rocking the green!

5. There are 80's in the forecast.

6. Don't forget Cinco de Mayo is Saturday. It is my favorite foreign holiday and there were direct implications for the United States.

7. Pool opening weekend is coming, I am deciding that it may be this weekend! I am feeling stirrings of summertime! I am tired of looking at images from Radio Flyer with the cover on the pool.

8. The Penguins stumbled yesterday in their quest for their third consecutive Stanley Cup losing to the Caps 4-1.


Headlines

Trump threatens government shutdown in September if no funding for wall - Reuters

Myanmar violence: Thousands flee fresh fighting in Kachin state - BBC

‘Ready, shoot, aim’: President Trump’s loyalty tests cause hiring headaches - The Washington Post



Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

"We must be willing to pay for excellence in government or risk a government run only by people of wealth or by those beholden to special interests."

— Radio Address to the Nation on the Federal Budget and Executive Salaries,

January 1, 1989

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Busy Beautiful Day

Springtime Scene Under the Weeping Cherry Tree
April 28, 2018

Yesterday was an exception to the spate of bad weather days.

The sky was blue during the morning and the temperatures were into the 70's and Chris and I got a lot of outdoors work done recovering from the winter.

The pool area is coming along, although I have not decided when to actually one the pool. I'm feeling like it may be next weekend, especially if the forecast 80 degree days actually show up. It is time to begin to celebrate the arrival of the outdoors season.

I wish that we had a longer outdoors season, but I need to enjoy what I actually can. 

The leaves are beginning to fill the blank spaces in the trees and return the scenery to green. That is encouraging. Flowers are blooming, finally, everywhere and my azaleas are about to burst forth as an added benefit.

It was a great and busy day!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Saturday Snippets

After I wrote about how miserably the Orioles were playing, they shut out the Detroit Tigers 6-0 last evening. It qualifies as their first blow-out delivered of the season AND a shut out. They have now won 6 games during April and are posting an overall 7-19 (.269) record. 


The Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Washington Capitals in game 1 of their second round series in pursuit of the Stanley Cup. The Pens have met the Caps 10 times in the playoffs and hold a 9-1 advantage in series won. The Pens are seeking their third consecutive Stanley Cup.

There are 80 degree temperatures in the forecast for next week! I am very excited!

Despite the warmer forecast, it looks as if we will be playing golf tomorrow in the cold, yet again. The forecast high for the day is 60 degrees!

Hopefully, the GORC Intramural Dodgers will be able to play their game today. It has been a rough week with one practice and two games canceled due to rain and poor field conditions.

Presidential Thought for the Day

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom. - President Thomas Jefferson

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Orioles: Hoping April Ends Soon

The best thing that could happen to the Orioles is that April would end and a new month start. 

The Orioles have won 5 games during April and are finding new ways to lose. The sport the third worst record in the majors at 6-19. 

Hoping the Fortunes of the Orioles change

The season has rapidly gone downhill. It has become downright ugly and difficult to watch. It is as bad as they finished September 2017 when they went 7-20 suffering a total end of the year collapse. Since the beginning of September 2017 the Orioles are 13-40 (.245). There was one game in October last year which was also a loss to end the season.

Last evening was no exception to the terrible string. The Orioles gave up 6 runs in the first 3 innings before finally scoring en route to a 9-5 loss.

The statistics do not look good. They have been blown out 6 times already this season while issuing no blow-outs of their own. Blow-outs in baseball are defined as losing or winning by 5 runs or more. 

The team batting average is a dismal .213. Last night they got 16 hits, but committed 3 errors and could only manage 5 runs. 

Dismal is the worst that comes to mind. But if the bats keep swinging maybe they will string some hits together. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

As the Trees Leaf

Trees in the Neighborhood
April 25, 2018

Looking at the Trees Along the Creek
April 25, 2018

The trees are beginning to leaf out. 

Finally.

I flew Radio Flyer last evening to get some images of the developing leaves. It is very amazing how things have changed in a few short weeks. The trees are greening and are beginning to obscure the flight lines I used during previous flights. 

It was good to see how much the leaves are beginning to burst forth. 

I love the green leaves! I have been missing them for six long months since they changed color and fell from the trees during October. N ow, they have begun to return.

The return of the leaves, along with mowing the lawn on Saturday, is a sure sign that after the far too long Winter, Spring is finally arriving.

There are even some 80's in the forecast for next week! Yes!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

As the Games Get Postponed

Jax on Saturday at the Plate

At least the temperature has stayed warmer.

Now the Spring-time rains have arrived and are playing havoc with the baseball schedules.

Jax Pitching on Saturday

Last night, the Orioles were rained out and the GORC Pirates practice was also rained out.

It was supposed to be an aggressive week of practice and games and we really needed the practice. 

This is the time of the year when almost everything revolves around baseball and the weather plays a big part in whether the games are played or delayed.

It is frustrating to get ready for practice and games only ot have the weather intervene. The weather has been bad enough this year anyway. At least the grass in the yard is growing.

Well, that's the game as they say.

I long to be warm at a game!

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Rabbits

Rabbit in the Yard
April 23, 2018

There was a big rabbit sitting in my yard yesterday morning munching on my newly green grass. The spot is right out in front of the house next to the driveway. A very open and unprotected spot for a rabbit.

As you can see, my yard has some rough spots where the rabbits like to graze. 

But in addition to eating my grass, they eat the hostas which are trying to grow and many of the other young tender plants around the yard. 

While I generally like the idea of rabbits, I'm not sure I appreciate the reality of them. 

And then there are the droppings, which Finnegan loves like they are tootsie rolls. Yech. Dogs can be very disgusting when it comes to such things. 

Maybe we need a fox to control the rabbits. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Monday Musings - April 23, 2018

1. It is the next to last Monday in April. The month is screaming to a close.

Violets Blooming in my Yard

2. Wasn't it funny that the IRS was not expecting a large volume of people to file their taxes on the last day and it broke their computers? I'm sure nothing like that has ever happened before.

A Goose-Golf Ball Situation
Compass Pointe Golf Course
April 22, 2018

3. Spring arrived! I found some violets in the yard.

4. Congrats to the Penguins as they move onto the next round of the NHL playoffs.

5. Yesterday, I mowed the lawn for the first time this season. I am glad there is finally enough green to actually begin the mowing process.

6. Golf yesterday morning was actually pleasant. By the end of the round I was able to take my coat off and enjoy the day. It was cool, but not cold! 

7. I did have a close encounter with a goose on the golf course. The goose was very interested in my golf ball and had to be encouraged to move away so that I could play my shot. Geese are much easier to move along than are alligators which we often see in Florida.

8. The cold temperatures of last week affected the grapevine buds. I hope that not too many were lost.

Headlines

China, Feeling Left Out, Has Plenty to Worry About in North Korea-U.S. Talks - The New York Times

Saving net neutrality, one house at a time - The Washington Post

Four presidents come together to pay tribute to Barbara Bush - CNN

'Ethnic purging': French stars and dignitaries condemn antisemitism - The Guardian

Ronald Reagan Quote for the Week

"It's time we tapped the well of human spirit that runs so deep in our land. We'll find more than the strength of numbers and the strength of resources. We'll find the strength of individual courage, know-how, and love of country." Remarks at a Rally for Senator Malcolm Wallop of Wyoming in Cheyenne, March 2, 1982

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Saturday on the Diamond

Jax on the Mound

It was an early morning game for the GORC Dodgers. The temperature at game time was barely 40 degrees, but it warmed quickly to almost 50 degrees. The Dodgers showed up to play and soundly defeated their opponents the Crofton Giants, 14-1. 

The game featured a very rare unassisted double-play by Jackson. With runners on 2nd and 3rd, he caught a pop-up and ran to to catch a runner who left third base too quickly. Had there been no outs at the beginning of the play it would have been a triple play since the runner on second also showed up at third base and Jax tagged him too. 

Jax also pitched three innings of shut-out baseball, including the first inning which saw only three hitters go to the plate.

The rest of the team played strong as well. There was good hitting, including a home run, and smart base running. There were also a couple of other defensive gems. Crofton's only run came on a bases-loaded hit batsman. 

It was an exciting game. The team has a tough week ahead with practice on Tuesday and games on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday! Wow. What a schedule. Thank goodness the team is blessed with six quality pitchers.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

Hanging Around

Watching the Twilight
April 20, 2018

The Neighborhood at Dusk
April 20, 2018

During the evenings this week we have had some enjoyable activities including sitting around the fire pit, until it ran out of propane.

I was able to fly Radio Flyer at dusk last evening and got some nice shots as the light was leaving the sky. It was fun to fly my drone and be able to see its lights and follow its flight. 

Earlier in the week, as we were sitting around the fire pit enjoying Happy Hour, Chris and I were amused by the antics of Ted, Jeremy's Keeshond puppy. Ted ran around the pool with Finnegan, but was especially enjoying the water just under the cover. He is a true water dog. 

It was fun to watch Ted run across the pool cover. He is so full of energy. 

I wish I had that much energy. 

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD