It's OK, It's OK, It's OK...

NY Yankees 5, Boston 0
NEW YORK (AP) -- With drama and flair, the New York Yankees completed another August sweep of the Boston Red Sox and moved into the AL wild-card lead...

"We need wins. I'd tell you the same thing if we just beat a high-school team three games in a row," said Derek Jeter, who went 4-for-4. "Now we have to play well against Tampa. Otherwise these games don't mean anything."

That's right! These games don't mean a thing!

Last year, the Yankees swept a five-game series at Boston from Aug. 18-21, opening a 6 1/2 -game lead in the AL East.

It's so different this season. The Yankees, who outscored the Red Sox 14-6 in the three games and outhit them 30-13, closed within five games of the division leaders and moved one game ahead of Seattle in the wild-card race. They had not finished a day in a playoff position since April 10, when the Yankees were 4-3.

This is just what they do. They do it every year. It's OK, It's OK, It's OK.

"If we play well enough, we'll be where we want to be," Jeter said.

That's right! Right where you want to be. Selling Avon.

It's OK, It's OK, It's OK.

I'm gonna go watch Fever Pitch again.

I almost forgot...

Or maybe I just blocked it out. But I got my butt kicked at Scrabble Saturday night. I don't often lose, but Ted used all of his letters twice for a monster score - like 277 or something. I'll leave it to Ted to post his exact score. It was a personal best for him. And Rachel took second. A distant second, but second none the less. And then there was me, bringing up the rear with some solid words like "ax" and "an".

It was humbling. Especially after the kite flying misadventure. Maybe if I keep trying, I'll find something I'm good at.

Trip To Ted's*

*With a bonus recipe thrown in!

Rachel and I boarded the dogs and went to visit Ted at his new house. There's a link over there on the right to Ted's blog about the building of his house, "The Sea Sanctuary." It is beautiful! Everywhere you look there are amazing details, and you will notice them if you can tear your eyes from the views of the ocean.

We got a late start. What else is new? But once we hit the road, we made pretty good time. Rachel encouraged me to let the car do it's thing. I've become a very safe, and perhaps overly cautious driver. I'm not going to become reckless or anything, but I am working on keeping my foot off the brake a little more. It was a fun and pretty drive.

We got to Ted's around 8 and gave him the house warming gift we picked out for him a few months ago at a Craft Festival in Lakeport.


Then we went to the Purple Rose for dinner.


Then we went over to scout out this little carnival that was in town. Fun to watch Ted shoot a machine gun.



And I won Rachel a little pug and some fuzzy dice playing the squirt gun and dart games.

And then we went on the Tilt-O-Whirl! Which was always my Mom's favorite ride when we went to a carnival as kids. But after a big Mexican dinner and a couple of Margaritas, it was the Tilt-O-Hurl. Click on the video below for a sample...



Then we went back to Ted's and played this crazy game that Ted got at a garage sale for $1. It's called Villa Paletti. No directions, no dice, and no hooky thingy. So we went to the internet for the directions, and MacGyvered a die and hooky thingy.

We're not quite sure if Ted won or I did. Ted placed the last piece, but it toppled over after a few moments. We couldn't find anything in the directions about how long it had to stand after a legal move.

And a(s)s usual, Ted had some wicked gas. Not that mine smelled like roses or anything.

Here's what Ted looks like when he laughs really hard...

I love that.

On Saturday, we slept in a little. Then we went out and about. I found a singing bowl for $5 at a flea market. And we walked around Mendocino.

I took this picture of Ted's house.

Ain't it stunning?

We sat around playing guitar while Rachel colored.

I sang loud and everything.

Some friend's of Ted's came over for the afternoon and ended up staying for dinner.

Mike is quite a character with lots of theories about everything. And he's an avid photgrapher who gave us this great print that will look great in our bedroom if we ever get it to Adrienne to frame it. And Gloria is this hip woman who runs the only record store in town.

I went to the beach to fly my kite while Rachel and Ted cooked dinner. Mike came with to help me launch. And there just wasn't enough wind. And I was disappointed. And I know better, but I tried and tried. It has been a long time since I've flown. And it always makes me feel good to fly. And when I was about to give up, Mike egged me on. And then I tripped and fell on some rocks. Not little rocks, but a giant boulder sea crag thing. And it hurt a lot. And there were people watching because they wanted to see my kite fly. So I lay there a minute, in pain, and humiliation, just trying to assess the extent of my injuries. And then I stood up. And as a final rebuke for trying to fly with no wind, a big wave, a seventh wave, washed over me up to my knees. And I was faced with a long slow miserable painful walk back to the house.

Here's what my back looked like after icing it...


Still hurts.

Anyway, by the time I packed up my kites and got back, the house smelled like a great dinner was just about ready. And it was. Rachel made a cobbler crumble thing with some peaches that Mike and Gloria brought.



And Ted made Three Cup Chicken. And this is the bonus recipe I promised. It's a recipe he learned from his mystery woman, Csarina.



It is really easy! Brown some chicken. Ted used legs and thighs, I made it last night with diced boneless skinless breasts. Anyway, brown whatever chicken you like (I think pork would be good too). Then put a pot on the stove and add equal parts of Soy Sauce, Sugar, and Oriental (or just about any kind of) cooking wine. Heat it to a boil and add the chicken. Then simmer until the chicken is cooked and the sauce is reduced to a sticky, barbecue sauce like consistency. When I made it, I added garlic and green onions because I just can't leave well enough alone. It is delicious!

Then on Sunday, I guess I didn't take any pictures.

Oh wait, I took these. Here's a panorama. It's kind of cool if you click on it to make it bigger and then scroll left to right in the browser window. You might have to click on it twice.

We tried to go see The Blushin' Roulettes, but we got a little sidetracked. Rachel hadn't spent any time on the beach and was bummed about it, so she went down while I packed the car. Then Ted went to join her. Then I went down. And there was this poor young harbor seal sort of washed up on the beach. It wasn't doing too well. We sat with it for a while and said nice things to it and tried calling around for a ranger or something. We were told one would stop by later.

Ted did this really cool thing that is just the sort of thing that makes Ted wonderful and won't surprise you if you know him. He sang a song from Dr. Doolittle (the original, of course, not the cheap Eddie Murphy knockoff).

It goes like this:

WHEN I LOOK IN YOUR EYES (Key of F)
When I look in your eyes,
I see the wisdom of the world in your eyes,
I see the sadness of a thousand good-byes,
When I look in your eyes.
And it is no surprise
To see the softness of the moon in your eyes,
The gentle sparkle of the stars in the skies,
When I look in your eyes.
**In your eyes,
I see the deepness of the sea;
I see the deepness of the love,
The love I feel you feel for me.
Autumn comes, summer dies,
I see the passing of the years in your eyes,
And when we part there'll be not tears, no good-byes,
I'll just look into your eyes.
(Instrumental interlude and pick up from **.)
TAG: Those eyes so wise, so warm, so real;
How I love the world your eyes reveal.

I cried.

And then we left. And by the time we got to Jughandle State Park, The Blushin' Roulettes had finished playing. So we stopped by Gloria's record store. And we got the handmade ice cream Rachel had been wanting. And the we took Ted home and headed back to The Yorb.

We stopped on the way home so Rachel could take this picture.


It was a great visit. The first of many. And a wonderful way to relax and celebrate our being together.

Clouds and Eclipses...

	No more be grieved at that which thou hast done.
	Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud;
	Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,
	And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.
	All men make faults, and even I in this,

Well, no clouds, but there was a total lunar eclipse that coincided just about perfectly with a full moon last night. And I decided to wake Jake up to enjoy it with me. I threw on some sweats, set up my camera and the tripod, got my star chart and red flashlight, and then I went to wake up Jake.

I didn't wake up Rachel, but after showing her the pictures, I wish I had. But she has to get up early for work. I do, too, but not as early. And I was only working a half day today because I had to take Jake for an ultrasound in Santa Rosa.

Anyway, it was great. It was the first time I noticed when the moon went in to the penumbra. I noticed it because we could gradually see more and more stars that are normally washed out by the bright moon. That was cool.

Jake pointed out to me what he thought was the Little Dipper. But I showed him how the star chart works and where the Little dipper actually was at the time (obscured by the house). His was, I think the Pleiades, and we have decided henceforth to call it the Mini Dipper. After that, he took to the chart like a pro and promptly found Cassiopeia and Pegasus. And we hung out and talked. I got us each a cookie and told him we had to eat it like an Eclipse. I was holding mine in my mouth while I fiddled with the telescope and it broke and fell. Five second rule was in effect, but I lost the game. Jake made it all the way to totality with his.

I took a bunch of pictures. So for those of you who were sleeping, here's some of what you missed...

That one I shot by holding my camera to the eyepiece of my telescope. Lucky shot - I took about thirty like that and this is the only one that came out. I love my digital SLR!!!!

This one is a composite I put together in Photoshop. Click on it to see a bigger picture...

I'm not going to win any awards or anything, but it's pretty cool, I think.

Five Years Sure Can Pass Quickly...

I was hoping to get this post up last Friday, but one thing led to another which led to something else and then we had to hit the road for Ted's house. I'll blog about our trip in the next day or so, but right now I want to take a minute to mark our anniversary.



Five years ago last Friday, Rachel and I were married. A lot of you who read this were there.




We've been through a lot and come a long way since then. And we've felt blessed every single day to have each other.

This song came up on our iPod while driving home from the coast on Sunday:

Neil Young - Stayin' Power

Our love, baby, feels so right
When you're smilin' in the morning light
I ain't leavin' no way

'Cause we got stayin' power
You and I
Stayin' power through thick and thin.

Gold and diamonds say you're mine
But true love opens the gates of time
And as we go on our way

We got stayin' power
You and I
Stayin' power through thick and thin

It sounds simple, but I couldn't say it any better, baby.

I love you, Rachel.

Today and tomorrow...

Today, my pool is green and my lawn is brown.

And Moe would like very much for me to come down and throw the ball for her.

At least the pond is clear. And there's a lot blooming.

And Jake did a great job of mowing what remains of our lawn today. I give it lots of water and I am pretty convinced that it's these nasty little flying bugs that are eating it up. I'm not going to bother trying to bring it back while we still have daytime temps in the upper 90s. I'll give it a go mid-September.

And we went for a drive together to run some errands and get some lunch. And we ate at Toxic Smell. And we had a lot of laughs. And there was an older, diminutive, and apparently at least slightly developmentally challenged woman working there. And Jake was wearing his Yankees jersey and hat with shorts. And the woman said, "So you like baseball, do you?" And I was impressed by how Jake handled what would have been, for me at his age, an uncomfortable situation. He smiled and said, "Yes." And then she said, "Well good luck with your game, I hope you win." And rather than trying to explain that he's only wearing the jersey because he's a Yankees fan, he just said, "Thanks."

After we ate and got up to leave, she came to wipe the table we just left. Jake said, "Thank you." And the woman let out this incredibly loud burp. A burp that was much too big for her small size. And she said, "You're welcome..." and then as we turned to leave, she said, "Excuse me." And we both managed to hold it together until we were outside and in the car before we burst out laughing.

It was a REALLY loud burp.

And tomorrow? Well, tomorrow is a special day for Rachel and I.

A violation of my privacy...

First, I need to just say that I can't believe Rachel would take a picture of me while I'm sleeping. I would never do that to her. Unless it was on the way home from the dentist.

This was so funny to her that she had to get the camera because, she says, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you without a picture." She got up this morning, got in the shower, and came out to find me sleeping like this...

She's right, I probably wouldn't have believed her. By the way, I am wearing boxer jammies. You just can't see them. And tomorrow I'm gonna get up really early and take a picture of her in the shower while she thinks I'm sleeping like that.

Right. Early enough to catch her in the shower. Not gonna happen.

Also, there is a lizard somewhere in my office...

I got the camera and he (or she) scurried under the extra desk in my office while I was shooting that picture. I would like to think that he (or she) got in one day while I (or me) left the door open or something. I'd hate to think something like that could just find it's way in to our house through a crack in the wall or something.

My efforts to locate the lizard and relocate him (or her) to the garden have failed so far. I'm still a little weird about creepy crawly things. I mean, I can do it, but it makes me uncomfortable. Maybe I'll get Jake to do it tomorrow.

In the meantime, I've decided to call him (or her) Leddie Lizzard.

Whoah...

I just realized that was two "blue" posts in a row. And this is supposed to be a family blog.

Isn't it? Wait, what's the point of this thing again? Wasn't it recipes and politics? Bad typing?

Anyway, here's a picture of Jake and his friend Mario playing in the pool last week.

Unfortunately, the pool is quite green this week. I'm gonna have to spend some time on that.

Also, I have this project I'm starting for Wisconsin Power and Light. And I had to take this OSHA test for hazardous chemicals in the workplace or whatever. It's great because now I know all of these TLAs (Three letter acronyms) that Rachel bandies about. Like "PPE" and "MSDS" and stuff. And I aced the test.

It was pretty easy, but I'm still proud to have gotten 100%. Funny how they drill that in to you when you're little and it still matters when we're older.

Got my car back and then some...

So I got the Touareg back last Thursday. And we almost got a used Passat for Rachel. But we didn't. I'll spare you the ups and downs we went through. It wasn't much fun. But we ultimately ended up going back to Vallejo Volkswagen in the Jetta on Friday. We took a trip down Bad Memory Lane (that's Tubbs Lane where Rachel got rear ended) on the way.

And we drove home in Rachel's new '08 Bunny.

Ain't it cute? Not sure if it's a boy bunny or a girl bunny. But I'm sure Rachel will figure it out. I don't know if you knew this about her, but she was in 4-H and got a blue ribbon or something for being able to determine the sex of rabbits. I am not kidding, this is true.

Anyway, front wheel drive, anti-slip traction, anti-lock brakes, lots of airbags, and safety cage construction will keep her safe. And the 2.5L 5 cyllinder engine will get her up the hills and still get good gas mileage. And once we hit 1,000 miles, she can start using the Tip-tronic transmission and hill assist on her commute.
On Saturday, we took a family drive down to Healdsburg to to return my loaner car. Did I mention it was a Malibu Classic? The same car I first learned to drive on, only that one was a '74 and had a big old 350 V8 and this one was an '06 or something and had...well, it had a convenient cup holder.

We had lunch at this great little diner called "Fitch Mountain Eddie's." Great food and service. And while there, in the Verizon EV network, I downloaded Robert Frost's The Road Less Travelled as part of my super-secret plan.

These Touaregs are supposed to be the bomb off road. And I was a little skeptical. It just feels too nice inside. And it is too fast on the street to be any good off road.

But I've been wanting to try it. I took a sudden and sharp left to a "shortcut" on Ida Clayton Road and pulled over. Rachel said, "Ah, honey, you don't want to go this way. It's a dirt road most of the way." But I did. And I'm glad we did. I read the poem to my family and off we went.

It was beautiful. I mean, it's not the sort of thing I'd want to do all the time. But it is a nice alternative to all of the jerks on the mountain through the twisty bits. There were waterfalls and some absolutely stunning views. And I think we saw Bigfoot, Laurie.

Unfortunately, I forgot my camera.

There's a nice long patch of dirt road with some switchbacks and I was amazed at how well it handled. The braking assist was a dream, and it didn't slide an inch over 8 miles or so. I love it. I thought the Trooper handled that road fine, but the Touareg is flipping amazing. It was also really smooth - didn't bother Rachel's back at all. But the best part is probably when I got back to pavement and put my foot in it to get back on highway 29. It's like my old Mustang, my Trooper, and my parent's Lincoln Continental all rolled in to one.

And I love dirty Pirelli's!
I was also thinking about getting new vanity plates. Seems odd to keep COMMTEK since the company is no more. And I haven't gotten around to doing the paper work for CommTech V. 2.0. And I was looking at those nifty "Kids" plates they have in California. You know, withe the nifty little icons like stars and crosses and hands and such. I came up with this...


...but I don't think it will fly.

From The Onion...

I was working on a post of my own that went something like, "The Yankees are coming! The Yankees are coming!" One if by fastball, two if by curve. Something like that.

Anyway, this post is for Laurie, Glenn, Jake, Rachel (but only when she can't find her Boston cap), and to some extent, Lauren (although she has become more of an A's fan. I'm a little scared because there is a very real chance I will have to root for the flippin' Angels come October. At least I'll get some quality time with my father-in-law.

Fucking Yankees, Reports Nation

BOSTON—Moments after the New York Yankees continued a month-long stretch that has seen them climb from the bottom of the AL East to pull within a once unfathomable four games of the first-place Red Sox by defeating the Baltimore Orioles...

Is that what I think it is...

I'll wait for Scott to confirm, but I'm 99% sure this is a nasty creepy crawly.

But then by the time he gets his internet working and all, this post will probably be way down and he won't see it. Unless I fall in to one of my lulls again.

Anyway, Rachel and I took a few shots of one of the flowers she planted, experimenting with depth of field and such. The light was bad, but this one came out pretty good.

Rachel just got home and she assures me that the first picture is "totally a black widow."

Anyway - she and Jake got back from a Remicaid treatment. His blood work was good and his sed rate was 15. So after consulting with Dr. Rich, we are going taking him off of the 6MP and up his Pentasa a little. Apparently some people who have been taking the combination of 6MP and Pentasa have developed lymphoma that shows up later on in years. So, you know, with this ulcerative colitis, there's always ups and downs. What we've been doing was working, but then now we find out there are some side effects. All you can do is knock wood and pray a little. And he hasn't had a flare up in a couple of years now, so that's a blessing.

Learned alot...

Between books and Ted's expertise and explanations, I learned all about f-stops and ISO and such. After reviewing a few of the early pictures, I realized that my exposures were a bit long and they got grainy. But I did get one meteor. It's a little tough to see, but there it is - that faint reddish streak. Starts with a little blob and heads to the right, generally perpendicular to the arc of the stars.

I'm a little disappointed that that's all I got, but I think my expectations were a little high. It is a big sky, after all - and it's a bit like looking through a straw at the ocean. Anyway, Rachel liked this one with our house in the frame...


And, of course, it was great hanging out with Ted. We talked about stuff, caught up on stuff, took a hot tub and stuff, and then went to sleep and stuff. Rachel watched for a little bit, but was tired and had to get in to work early, and so went to bed.

I'm going to practice a bit more with the night shooting and the different settings on my camera. Hopefully I'll be better prepared for next year, or perhaps the Leonids.

Sunday and leading in to Sunday night and Monday morning...

We've been taking it easy this weekend. And Rachel decided to spruce up the plants in the entryway.



They look great.
Our dear friend Ted, the tall guy who married us, asked if he could come watch the Perseids with us on his way home from the Bay Area to his Sea Sanctuary in Ft. Bragg.

And we said sure. And now we have to frantically tidy up a bit before he gets here.

I'm going to try some Astro-Photography tonight. I've been reading up on it in the book Laurie got me. If I get anything decent, I'll post them here.

Saturday Golf and DInner...

Out of the blue on Saturday, Frank and Marla called and asked if we wanted to go hit some golf balls and get some dinner at the Greenview. This was a little odd as I have never known Frank to play golf. But I was all for it.

It was, I think, the first time I've strapped the clubs on the Hotel Yorba Courtesy Car.

Andrea's got a golf camp next week, so we wanted to practice. I haven't hit a ball in a long time, and I don't know that Tony's ever played. And it was a blast. We had a few pops and smacked a couple of hundred balls.

Then we had dinner.
Decent meal. And I don't know what they've got going on down there. Apparently the restaurant is closed for a remodel and reopening or something. And the bar closed at 9:00. The management frequently complains that we residents don't support our local amenities. Who wants to go to a bar that closes at 9:00 on a Saturday? And what happened to Karaoke?

Just a little fire...

...but close enough for us to freak out a little.

I was working in my office Friday afternoon when I heard planes overhead. And they continued for about five minutes. So I got curious and turned on the scanner and heard, "Roger, I'm over the Coyle Springs incident..."

Um, that's my street. I looked outside and there was a lot of smoke. I yelled to the people I saw in the lot asking if they needed help and if they'd called the fire department. They had. I yelled for Jake to get his shoes on, got my hard drive with all of our pictures and got the dogs ready for a quick exit just in case. By the time I got there, the fire department was on scene. Then I called Marla at work to let her know what was going on and that I'd give her an update when I knew more.

And I took some pictures.

I also figured out why I haven't heard our neighbor's boxer in a while. They moved. And the property owner was there on Friday. And he cut down a bunch of weeds and raked them in to a pile. And that's a real good idea with the fire danger. But then he proceeded to try to BURN the debris rather than bag it. No permit. And apparently no brain either. It jumped pretty quick and spread to the lot next to Frank and Marla's. That lot is owned by their parents.

We live in a great neighborhood and everybody jumped and got hoses and shovels and such. And the fire department got here quick. I think Dianne was the neighborhood hero as she vaulted a fence and started hosing it down. And Joel, a math teacher and a few other people came down from up the street.

And once the danger was over, everybody started joking about the old decrepit pine tree - couldn't we have let it burn?



I called Marla back and conferenced in Frank and let them know everything was OK. The scariest thing was how the fire department had to foam the propane tank. If that had caught and blown, it would have been a whole different story.



But everything's OK, and it's great to see how wonderful our neighborhood is in a crisis.