Sunday, June 4, 2023

Oshima

Oshima stood at the plate. 

The taiko drum boomed. 

The crowd chanted for Oshima to hit a home run, "Kato Basay, O-Shima". 

A group of four local fans stood and chanted louder from four rows back, "Kato Basay, O-Shima". 

We stood and chanted, too, "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

The locals chanted louder and thrust their arms in the air, "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

We chanted louder and thrust our arms in the air, "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

A full count to Oshima.

We alternated chanting, "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

Fouled out of play.

Louder, "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

Fouled out of play.

"Kato Basay, O-Shima", "Kato Basay, O-Shima", "Kato Basay, O-Shima".

Oshima hit a long fly ball to our section of the stadium. 

The announcer bellowed, "Kato Basay, Oshima".

 

Saturday, January 19, 2019

A History

Every summer, Bobbi and I try to remember all the summer trips we have taken over the years. We always forget something.
  1. Brown Nissan truck to New England. Highlights included Virginia at Steve's, Bar Harbor, and Gettysburg. We bought a mandolin in Burlington, VT.
  2. Street performing in Europe, for the first part of the trip. We visited France, Italy, Austria and Germany.
  3. We spent New Year in Jamaica at a Yoga resort. A short trip at the end of the summer to Portland, OR, to visit Gerry and Joan. We met Jack and Mary, too. We camped near Mount Saint Helen.
  4. We rented an Astro van and drove from Miami to the four corners. In Texas, we saw our first Whole Foods Market. We visited a lot of parks for the first time in Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.
  5. We loved Breckenridge so much, we decided to return for a month. We drove the Celica and shipped our bikes. We stopped in New Orleans on the way.
  6. A short trip at the end of the summer to Emerald Isle. We stayed in Martha's Mother's cottage.
  7. We loved Emerald Isle so much that we returned the next year. We stayed a week in the cottage and then rented the house next door for three weeks. Eli, Barbara, Danny and Rachel came to visit, as did Kandy and Roy, along with Danny and Susan.
  8. Once again we returned to lovely Emerald Isle. No one came to visit, so we enjoyed it ourselves.
  9. A short trip to NYC to see Stomp with Larry and Randi. We stayed gratefully in Betty's apartment on the upper west side.
  10. Drove to Boston for Larry and Randi's wedding. We stopped in Virginia at Steve's for a few days. Bobbi travelled to India in December.
  11. We swapped vacation locations with Larry and Randi. The first week we spent in CA near Mount Shasta, and near Monterey. The second week was in Miami and Key West.
  12. We loved Shasta so much we returned for a few weeks. Near the end of the trip, we climbed Mount Lassen.
  13. We rented a red Grand Am and travelled to Banff, Lake Louise, the ice fields, Jasper, and Waterton Lakes. We met a couple who had rented a small RV. We were enticed.
  14. We rented our first RV and nicknamed it the Spam Can. It reminded us of a U-Haul truck. We spent a night at Feathered Pipe Ranch and then header to Yellowstone and the Tetons. The ride home was in a wind storm. 
  15. We rented a smaller van, a Pleasure Way, in Calgary. We visited Banff, Lake Louise, Yoho, Golden, and Radium Hot Springs.
  16. We returned to Calgary and rented another Pleasure Way. Went to Glacier, amid raging forest fires. We travelled to East Glacier, where Bobbi turned her ankle and broke it. 
  17. We bought a small RV conversion van. We travelled to NC. We suffered through ants, infections, burnouts, and near fires. We visited Gary's retreat near Asheville. Towards the end of the trip, we discovered Davidson River Campground in Brevard. In December, we travelled with Roy and Kandy to Hawaii.
  18. A short van trip back to Brevard, NC. All went well and we fell in love with RVing.
  19. No trip. We moved Bobbi's school.
  20. Drove the van to Nova Scotia and PEI. We stopped at Kripalu, where Kandy met us for a workshop. On the way home, we stopped in Brevard and bought a mandola.
  21. Headed back to Utah. On the way we stopped in Mammoth Caves and Hot Springs. We had some minor trouble with the alignment on the truck. Nothing a hammer and saw couldn't fix. Visited many parks: Grand Canyon, Zion, Cedar Breaks, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Great Basin, Mesa Verde, Rocky Mountain, and Hot Springs.
  22. We loved Rocky Mountain and Estes park so much, we returned. We also returned to the Tetons. We had an idea of travelling to Idaho, but decided to return to Estes Park. We saw an Indian festival on the way to the Tetons.
  23. We returned to Glacier, via Michigan and North Dakota. We like the UP and Teddy Roosevelt National Park.
  24. China, Siem Reap, and Tokyo.
  25. We returned to Colorado via Albuquerque and Taos Ski Valley. We visited the Great Sand Dunes, Pegosa Springs, Curecanti, Crested Butte, Gunnison. We returned to the UP in Michigan on the way home. Eli and Barb joined us. We stopped in the Great Smokies, too.
  26. In March, we travelled to the Amazon and Machu Picchu. In the summer, we drove all the way to Idaho. We spent more time in Pegosa Springs and visited Steve in Jackson Hole for July 4. Returned to the Tetons. Visited St. Louis, where we had to fix the van window. We also saw Lincoln's home, camped in Kansas, and discovered DeSoto State Park in Alabama.
  27. Trip to Tanzania. First, we flew to Belgium and spent a few days in Brugge. We had some plane problems, but made our flight to Tanzania, via Addis Ababa.
  28. We drove to Maine. We drove up the coast, instead of on I-95. Visited with family near Burlington. Spent time in Bar Harbor and Campobello. Nearer home, we stopped in Brevard. Tim bought a resonator guitar at the same store where he bought the mandola.
  29. A month in Alaska: Ketchikan, Petersburg, Juneau, Glacier Bay, Haynes, Skagway, Sitka, Anchorage, Seward, Whittier, Denali National Park. We rented a van in Anchorage. 
  30. Travelled to Arizona, via North Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Albuquerque. Bobbi taught a workshop in Show Low. We stumbled onto Sedona and Flagstaff, We spent two weeks. On the way home we visited Monument Valley. We encountered closed forests due to fire near Durango, so we went over the pass and spent several days in Ridgeway. We spent a few days in Frisco, CO. 
  31. Tim went to IJA convention in Fort Wayne. Travelled to Maine. We had van trouble. We started with 4th of July parade in Flagler Beach. Saw Twelfth Night with Mike and Cathy in Lenox. Saw the Lake Monsters play in Burlington with Karen, Mike and Billy. We ate lobster rolls in Bar Harbor and went on a bay cruise. On the way home, we went to Tanglewood with the whole family. Saw the new river bridge in WV on the way home. The park attendant drove around for two days with the same branches on his cart. DeSoto Park where Tim did the zip line course.
  32. Stayed in Florida, during the pandemic. Visited Kandy in Fort Meyers. Went to Bok Tower. Spent Thanksgiving with Steve and Mary at Flagler Beach.
  33. Sanibel for a week in the spring. Headed to NC in the fall for Thanksgiving, via Myakka and Bok Tower. We turned back in Georgia and flew to NC. 
  34. Summer trip to Desoto, Great Smokey, Brevard. Trip to Costa Rica in the fall.
  35. Private tour at Lion Country Safari.

Saturday, June 17, 2017

Heading South - 2017

August 10 - Wednesday

It started raining as we left the campground and a lumber truck blocked the dump station, so we neglected to dump the van, and it needed dumping.

We drove through Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. We ate a a Cracker Barrel for lunch. They had Patriots gear for sale. We arrived at Mike's at 6:30. We ate a nice meal of sea bass cooked on the grill. We sat on the front porch and swatted mosquitoes. We talked with Mike, Cathy and Rob until late. We had a good laugh when Rob made a reference to Al, which led us to watching talking animal videos on youtube (Daytime/Nighttime; Steve/Al)

August 11 - Thursday

Everyone else went to work. We saw Cathy before she left. We drove to DAR State Forest to dump, then stopped at Big-Y and the local coop and CVS. We spent time at the Button Box, playing pricey concertinas. The fellow at the store was very friendly and helpful. He took apart the concertina to see what repairs it needed. He also priced it for us. He gave us an estimate for fixing a few things and tuning the concertina. He let Tim sit and play concertinas while he was assisting another customer. The room for the concertinas was about 12x12 and contained over fifty concertinas.


Back at Mike's, we rested until Karen arrived. Bobbi taught a Yoga class to Cathy and her neighborhood friends, while Mike, Karen and Tim walked the dogs at DAR. We had a nice time reminiscing about old times.

We all drove to Northampton and Mike treated us to dinner at the Eastside Grill. It was a fun evening.

The big meteor shower was that night, but it was cloudy and raining. Just before bed, the clouds broke. Tim watched for meteors with Karen and Cathy on the back deck. We saw a few, then the clouds and rain rolled back in.

August 12 - Friday

Saw Cathy and Karen in the morning, before they took off. We went back to the Button Box to leave the concertina to be repaired and tuned. They will ship it Miami when it is done.

Arrived in Pittsfield State Forest around 3. We took the Berry Pond Loop by mistake. It is a narrow, one-way, steep and winding road. The campsite we wanted was all the way back down the mountain, on a side road to the way we drove in. We camped on the side of a hill in a field. No dump station.

Arrived at Tanglewood at 6, then meditated. We enjoyed the concert, especially Bolero.

Back to the campground by 11.



August 13 - Saturday

Drive, drive, drive. Drove from Pittsfield to Shenandoah. We missed a campsite by an hour. We stayed at a Jellystone Resort for $97. Kids love it.

August 14 - Sunday

Drive, drive, drive. We arrived in Brevard. Went into town and drove around. We ate at the Sora Japanese restaurant. Every time we visit Brevard, we have at least one dinner at this restaurant.


We rented Bridge of Spies at a Red Box. We didn't finish watching it.

August 15 - Monday

Went to town to walk around. Tim bought a bumper sticker, Bobbi bought a dish, and a surprise guitar magnet for Tim.

Next, we went to the guitar store. They had a resonator guitar for sale for $500. Bobbi liked the sound too, so she bought it for Tim. Tim had been looking for a resonator, ever since he played one at the Gibson factor in Memphis. This is the same store where Tim bought the mandola, several years back.




Finished the movie and went back to town, so Bobbi could buy the spoon bracelet that she had seen earlier in the day.

August 16 - Tuesday

Drive, drive, drive. Over 500 miles on the slate today. On the road by 8:15.

In Columbia, SC, we needed propane. On the way to the store, the truck starting vibrating. We thought it was the road. Got off the highway for propane and drove on US 1. Same problem. Let air out of tires. Same problem. Went to Lovey's Service. They were busy. Went to Automotive Experts. They diagnosed a bad tire with separated steel belt. They replace the tire and we were on the road within a few hours.

Ate at Cracker Barrel again (poached eggs and pancakes). Arrived at Flagler at 9 pm. Met Steve, Mary and Briana. Talked for an hour, then went to bed.

August 17 - Wednesday

Breakfast in the morning with the whole gang. Mary and Briana headed North to Ga Tech. Dropped Steve at Enterprise, then headed home.

Tim was surprised at 6 lanes of 95 at Palm Beach. He remembers when it was only two lanes, 25 years ago. Heavy traffic. Arrived home at 3 pm. We traveled 6000 miles.






Saturday, June 10, 2017

Heading South Through Maine - 2017

August 1 - Monday

We stopped into a local potter's gallery. She also taught some yoga classes. Bobbi chatted with her about yoga and bought a cup. Tim sat on the deck and petted a cat.

Worked, did laundry by the river and ate whole lobster on the deck at Helen's Restaurant.

Did more work at Dunkin' Donuts. We stopped at a Rite Aid for more bandages for Bobbi's hand.

Spent another night at Cobscook. The ranger saw our "Campsite Occupied" sign last week and kept it at the office, from whence we retrieved it.


August 2 - Tuesday

We drove to Nancy and Tom's. Bobbi did yoga while Tim rode the trails behind the inn.


The sun was out and the view was spectacular. The trails through the woods were tantalizing.


We explored to the end of the road by the inn and found a lovely lighthouse. We met a couple from Florida, who were also visiting the lighthouse.

We ate dinner at the inn with Tom and Nancy. Tom was up and down, since he still had an inn to run.

After dinner we toured the barn that Tom built. Tom has a workshop where he works on guns and teaches gun skills. Tom is a gunsmith.

We spent the night in a lovely room at the inn. The inn is fantastic. It is romantic, with period furniture and old radios. The view of the bay is gorgeous and the hiking/biking trails are in the back yard.

August 3 - Wednesday

Yoga with Nancy in the morning. She teaches several classes a week in the studio that abuts the inn.

We ate breakfast at the inn, but Tom and Nancy were busy running the inn. They do a good job, and there is a lot to do.

We headed south to Acadia.

We checked into Bar Harbor camping, after passing on another campground that was a parking lot. Our campsite is at the end of a row, with woods across the abutting road.

August 4 - Thursday

We rode the bus into town and walked around. The crowds and the bustle overwhelmed us. We bought lobster rolls, chips and a whoopie pie at the Down East Deli, and ate them on the green, overlooking the harbor.

The bus dropped us at the park headquarters. Tim rode a bike from there around the Witch Hole Pond loop carriage road. A steep trail at the start, that leveled out, with a rise in the middle.

Rockefeller built these beautiful bridges so he and his quests could ride carriages through his land. 

The trail passes Witch Hole Pond. A serene lake under a pleasant blue sky. Local wildlife enjoy the view, too.


August 5 - Friday

Took the bus to Sand Beach and walked the Ocean Path by the Thunder Hole. The tide was high, so it was not the best time for viewing (and listening to) Thunder Hole.


Along the way, we spotted some rock climbers scaling a cliff.

The path was level, with a few rocks (of course) along the way.

We ate hard-boiled eggs on the rocks at the end of the path.




We flagged the bus at an unscheduled stop and rode to Jordan Pond House. We wanted to get the famous pop-overs, but it was a 50 minute wait. We opted for egg salad to go. We walked along the lake path. We didn't realize the restaurant closes early and then very few buses run. We thought we had missed the last bus, but we had only missed the last loop bus. The NE Harbor bus arrived within 5 minutes.

On the way to the campground, we drove the loop to Cadillac Mountain.

Many people were watching the sunset. We found a parking space, as people had already left the area. The temperature was dropping. The fog was rolling in.


Minestrone soup for dinner and some episodes of M.A.S.H. The shows were heavy and not so funny.

August 6 - Saturday

Tim rode the carriage roads to Aunt Bettie's Pond. Bobbi did yoga in camp.

Drove to Trenton for lobster rolls and crab rolls. A dog was sitting behind the wheel of the truck parked next to us.

 We were enjoying Acadia so much, we decided to extend our stay and skip our planned visits to Rhode Island and Connecticut. We will have to check them off the RV map on another trip.

Back at camp, we did laundry, took showers, and watched the Martian. Matt Damon did more and better acting in the Martian than Leonardo Decaprio in Revenant. We saved the final hour of the movie for the next morning.

August 7 - Sunday

We took a boat cruise from NE Harbor. Mike was a former park ranger for 30 years and was an excellent tour guide.

On the way out of the harbor, we spotted a quaint lighthouse.


We saw many osprey, in nests, in trees in buoys.

Osprey return to the same nest year after year, so the nests tend to get bigger and bigger.



Further out, we saw seals, cormorants, and gulls.

 I was amazed at how many cormorants we saw. I don't remember seeing them when I lived up north.

For lunch, we stopped at Little Cranberry Island. Bobbi bought a friendship bracelet at an art gallery in a home.

On the tour, we met a neighbor for the first time. If we stand on our roof, we could throw a stone to his roof. He has a summer home in Maine. In December, he helps host the local boat parade. He has Christmas lights in a big tree. He used to feed the parrots, but it became to costly.

After the cruise, we stopped at the craft fair in the park next to the marina.

We ate dinner in Bar Harbor at the West Side Cafe. Lazy lobster over linguini.

We watched the rest of the movie in the van and then returned it to the Hannaford market.

We booked a night at a campground in Freeport. We will be heading home soon.



August 8 - Monday

We took a hike up to Huguenot Head and Champlain. The buses were crowded at noon. Lots of people heading to Jordon Pond.


The hike up was paved with hand-carved granite, a unique trail. The last half mile to Champlain was very steep.

The top was windy, with a panoramic view. Many trails lead to the peak.



The bus home went to Village Green. We bought some sweets at a bake sale by the church across from the bus stop.


Back at the campground, we grabbed some wood from the neighbors who checked out in the morning. We had our farewell camp fire that night.

August 9 - Tuesday

Out by 10:30. Stopped at picnic area across from welcome center for breakfast. Three guys were musselling as the tide came in.

We stopped at the other batik store on the way.

We drove to Wiscasset to eat a lobster roll at Red's Eats. but the line was too long, and the rolls were $25. We went across the street and had one for $20 without a line (and without a smile). We gave $1 to a guy playing guitar on the dock.

Drove to Freeport. Tim checked out L.L Bean and the new mall and the movie times. Bobbi shopped at Mexicali Blues and bought $700 worth of clothes. The sales clerk was bubbly and envied that Bobbi taught yoga.

We headed to the campground and then returned to Freeport to see a movie. We saw the new Star Trek Beyond. Bobbi checked out J. Crew, but did not see anything interesting.

Monday, May 29, 2017

Campbello - 2017


July 28 - Thursday

We drove to Lubec to call FIU. Phone reception in Maine is iffy.







After the call, we drove over the bridge to Campobello, Canada. The island is part of Canada, but the only bridge to it is from the US.




We stopped at the info booth and picker up many pamphlets. We parked the van along the road by Friar's bay and ate breakfast.

We drove to the campground to check availability for the next night. We left and then returned to double-book for the current night (we already had a campsite in the US). We decided that crossing through customs twice, just to come back, was not worth it. We would rather enjoy our time at Fog Fest on Campobello. Unfortunately, we left our "Campsite Occupied" in the US. It is probably gone forever.

Drove to Island Cruises, but got lost and found St. Anne's instead, an old church with local art for the festival. We finally made it to Island Cruises and booked a whale-watching tour for Sunday afternoon. We drove to the end of the island to see a lighthouse with a big red cross.

We ate lunch at the Family Fisheries and listened to pop/folk music.

We returned to the campsite and the fog rolled in. We rested for a bit, and then walked to the golf club house and listened to Celtic music. We walked back along a trail in the dark. We overshot the start of the trail, but we back-tracked and found it.

July 29 - Friday

We were able to book another night due to a cancellation. The festival has stages near the campground for the next two nights.

Ate breakfast at Herring Cove. A bus load of kids frolicked in the sand and jumped across the stream. One boy seemed sad. A skinny Ed set up a tent for Fog Fest.

We ate lunch at the Fireside and listened to a three-piece band, that should have been a four-piece band, but the bass player was late. The name of the band was the Crows. They looked like crows. We shared some fish tacos and fish soup.

We returned to the campground, site 74. We walked to the beach to listen to country and blues.

Skinny Ed was there again, setting up the stage.

Melissa Hunt played country, Keith Hallet sang blues. The fog rolled in again, along with some rain. We dodged raindrops and heard both groups. Keith Hallet is a solo, blues dulcimer-guitar player.








There is a good reason why it is called Fog Fest.


July 30 - Saturday

We drove to the library gala to hear sea shanties. Bobbi bought sea glass necklaces. We looked at some used books in the library. Outside, some craft booths were erected.






We went to Jocie's Porch, but didn't stay. Some bands are more polished then others. We ate lobster rolls across the street at the stand on the Friar's Bay beach.

We toured the grounds of Roosevelt's Home. The houses had many artifacts from the past. The grounds were beautiful.













We returned to Jocie's Porch for the Snow Crows. We had seen two members at many of the weekend shows, so we had to check them out. We ate some pie and drank some tea.






That night in the campsite (site 49) we heard East Coast Love Story. The singer was on crutches.


The next act was Andrew Waite and The Trim, who sounded like the E-Street band. We bought their CD.

A girl with a hula hoop was dancing near the stage. We had seen her at other events, too. She liked the spotlight.

July 31 - Sunday

We went back to the Fireside to listen to a three-piece Celtic band. They were very good. Unfortunately, we had to leave early for our whale watch.

We bought tickets and Bobbi spotted the first mate who turned out to the the captain.

The dock was amazing, because it had to accommodate for extreme tides.

We cruised by the other side of the lighthouse that we saw upon our arrival three days ago. The lighthouse is actually on an island at high tide, but a peninsula at low tide.



We spotted some Minke Whales and harbor seals. We followed the whale for a while.





Some porpoises swam in our wake.



We spied some lighthouses at the extreme range of the zoom.







We cruised by an island with cormorants and gulls. An eagle flew by and all the gulls attacked. We saw an eagle nesting in a tree along the shore.


 
On the way back to the dock, we spotted some osprey and eagles.







Our whaler was a fine ship. The dock was piled with lobster traps.








We drove back to the US and spend another night at Cobscook. The ranger saw our "Campsite Occupied" sign and kept it at the office, from where we retrieved it.

We drove into Machias and ate at The Riverside. We were too late for laundry. We went to the marke and rented The Revenant from the Hannaford market. Tim used WiFi at McD's to work, while Bobbi wrote checks. We were underwhelmed with The Revenant and did not agree that Leonardo Decaprio deserved the Oscar for best actor.