A Yabba Dabba Doo Time

A gay old time indeed. Apart from that first night when Kelsey burned her hand on the skillet, and I thought we would have to go to the hospital. But the rest of the time was total bliss... OK, maybe when the wind kicked up to 60 mph whipping the tent around and making it bitter cold. But really, other than those two times... Well there was that time when that tarantula crawled inside my pants... All right, so that last one never happened. And the first two weren't all that bad anyway. It was a really, really great time.

Kelsey and I went out to Joshua Tree for a couple nights of camping the last weekend of her spring break. It's a wonderful place, so unique... well, because of the Joshua Trees and all. Perhaps not creatively named, but unique nonetheless. It's east of LA in the high desert and famous for rock climbing, Joshua Trees (duh), and rock stars staying in sleazy motels and doing all sorts of drugs. Also it can get really really cold, really really hot, or really really windy. Though Kelsey may tell you it got really really cold, that was not the one (of three) extremity it reached. It did get windy, but only for about 15% of the time we were there. And mostly at night. Which isn't so bad, but it's hard to sleep when your tent is doing this:

Thankfully the second night was dead calm and the sleeping was easy. And though Kelsey did burn her hand, it was for a good cause: my dinner. I'm sure the potatoes would have tasted just as good with or without seared human skin, but I digress. The new cast iron cookware was the bomb, as the kids say, or "le bomb," as the French kids say. So thanks to the parents Brown for those.

Other than eating, we drove around seeing the sights (tried out the 4-wheel, yee haw!), scrambled around on the rocks, took a couple very cool hikes (to some abandoned mines and the best sounding mountain I ever heard of), and enjoyed the scenery and diversity the national park has to offer. Can't wait to do it again!

Bedrock

Desert Queen Mines

meat and potatoes

hike up Ryan Mtn.

Ryan Mtn. hike log

Kelsey at Arch Rock

night falls at Belle Camp

The rest of the pics.

Breakin' Away

Kelsey came out for her spring break a week ago, and even the fact that we are collectively about two decades from our prime SB years couldn't stop us from having a good time. And I'm almost recovered. Most of those years are mine, you know. But the springtime of youth is replaced by the wisdom of age, giving me, among other things, the knowledge of the best places to eat: Rinaldi's, Boogaloo Cafe, South Bay Deli, Fleming's, the list goes on (though Second City was a little disappointing this time).

We kept it low key throughout the week (not all of us were on vacation) but managed to get out both weekends, Wabash baseball and a drive-in the first weekend followed by camping the next. Here's some of the fun, in pictorial form.

Wabash @ Redlands

driving in the San Bernardinos

at the drive-in!

More pics.

Another Year Older...

...and deeper in debt. Isn't that how the song gos? Well I did just buy a new motor carriage, so maybe they're right.

So the weekend I went home for Ella's big swim also just happened to be my birthday. You all, no doubt, have just seen my magnanimous gesture of supporting my little cousin for what it really was, my desperate need for attention, presents, and cake. So sue me.

It was decided that the party's theme would be "my favorite things." So naturally we had Bruno's, Happy Burger fried chicken, and chocolate cake with cream cheese icing. As the kids are prone to say now: winning. It was great to be home to celebrate with Kelsey and all my family. Thanks everyone.

great cake, kels!

A few more pics.

Chlorine: The Smell Of Victory

Little cousin Ella is a senior this year, and also happens to be an awesome swimmer. Since I tried to impersonate an aquatic athlete for a few years, I've always felt we shared a unique bond about the sport. Unfortunately, I've never been able to see her compete until this year. Oh wait... I still haven't seen her compete. More on that later.

I decided this being her last year I would make it to see a meet. It's a winter sport and with the holidays and meets being held generally during the week, there's never a convenient time to head home to see her. All times being equally bad, I decided I'd go to her last home dual meet, a.k.a. Senior Night. This happened to be on a Thursday night, and me being short on vacation, I took an early flight through Phoenix to get there on time.

I knew when I booked the flight that I couldn't afford any delays due to weather or otherwise, but I figured once I was off the ground with my connection out of Phoenix then I was good to go. But 30 minutes into the flight to Indy, the captain came over the PA and said the backup pressurization system malfunctioned, leaving us with only the primary system. So... we had to turn around.

Even worse, we had to turn around, descend, and fly with the landing gear down to burn off enough fuel to land therefore limiting our time in holding. But flying with the gear down also means slow. And loud. Fun. Meanwhile I'm starting to go through the timeline in my mind. Half hour back, change planes quick, OK. I can probably afford a 2-hour hit to my schedule and still make it in time. Particularly with Ella's big race (backstroke) being towards the end.

Unfortunately once over Phoenix, we end up having to air taxi anyway. All said and done, we were in the air about 90 minutes to get right back where we started. To the airline's credit, they did get us moved onto a new plane and off again quickly once we returned. But with a 2 1/2 hour hit to my tight schedule.

And to make matters worse, I went with the cheap rent-a-car place, which is, cheaply, located at the old airport in the opposite direction as the meet. So we land in Indy, I sprint through the airport, call the shuttle, then have to ride in the van the wrong way. Only to have the slowest car counter guy explain all the extra services they offer. No thanks, Carl.

Finally, car keys in hand, I head down the road to Martinsville... Only to arrive not 10 minutes after Ella's last race. Mega Bummer. But at least there was no school the next day, so I got to stick around and have lunch with the Pauls and ride back up to Cass County with Grandma, which was fun.

So sorry I missed you, Ella, but I'm super proud of you anyway. Even for the short time I was around the pool, it was obvious how much all of her teammates and coaches respected and appreciated her. She is a special person, I know. Just wish I could be around more to see. She has also decided to attend Butler next year, a true relief as the other finalist was DePauw. I know you made the right decision, El. Pics! And a GIF!

celebratory kick of the coach

Happy New Year, Everybody

I know I'm way behind on content rich blog posts, but that's just the way it is right now. So these bare bones posts and pictures will just have to do. These are from Kelsey's visit over New Year's. Unfortunately neither of us felt up to doing anything extraordinary, so we just went ordinary, staying in and watching movies. But that was good enough for me. Did we even make it to midnight?

More pics.

Fun With GIFs!!!!

In my immature little mind, nothing is funnier than a well-crafted GIF... except for a poorly-crafted GIF. Here's a few from the guys bowling night over Christmas. Not sure if they will embed correctly, so if they aren't animated clicking each picture should work.

From GIFs

From GIFs

From GIFs

From GIFs

From GIFs

From GIFs

The Faces Of Christmas

Sorting through this year's Christmas photos, I couldn't help but notice how expressive the faces were. I'm sure some of you will probably get made at me, but here you go anyway. I present... The Faces Of Christmas. Love to you all.

Full size and more pictures over here.