Father’s Day, fishing, and the vacuum cleaner

Three weeks of June are gone. There’s a new U.S. Open golf champion, today is Father’s Day, and i got to use my fishing license for the first time this year . . .

Father in law, Captain of the scow

Father in law, Captain of the scow

My Father in law took us to Strawberry Reservoir to go fishing. i can’t think of a better way to spend a day.

Then the reality hits that the fish aren’t biting, it’s still spring in Utah, and the Open is being played. It started off a nice day (besides the fact the motor wouldn’t start) and got progressively more Hasson. By that, i mean the fish finder was in ‘demo mode’, showing us a whole Sunday School of fish – but it was an electronic mirage. Smooth sailing turned to wind and chop. Nothing was biting, except the wind that picked up off the lake. By noon, we decided to pull up and eat a sandwich.

View from the Lodge

View from the Lodge

We weren’t the only ones to call it a day – there was traffic everywhere, and for the first fifty miles, most of it pulling boats. It looked like all the dad’s were rushing home to see the U.S. Open, when Tiger and Phil and Ernie all had a chance to win a major. Dustin Johnson started the day with a three stroke lead and promptly endeared himself to hackers everywhere, with a triple bogey followed by a double bogey followed by a bogey enroute to a smooth sunday score more like an amateur flight at the local muni as opposed to the last round of our country’s premier golfing event. An event played out at Pebble Beach, a California links course thousands of miles from Northern Ireland.

An event won by an Irishman, the first time since 1970 someone from the U.K. won the event. It did not suck, unless you were a golfing superstar, an American golfing superstar to be more specific.

i bring up things that suck because i cleaned the man-cave today, and in a rare concession to modern appliances and contrary to everything Father’s Day stands for, i ran the vacuum cleaner in my den. It left behind various bits and pieces, so i can say, it didn’t suck either . . .

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D – Day, golf, porterhouse steaks, and a rainbow

What do they have in common? i celebrated each, in it’s turn, today. Sixty Six years after the landing at Normandy, today’s world bears little resemblance to that one. The wars we are fighting today are not against a conventional enemy, and we cannot mount an Operation Overlord that would establish a beach head on enemy soil. We are already there, fighting an enemy that is more an idea than a regulated army. A Fourteenth century idea, but an idea nonetheless. . .

We went to Meadowbrook today, and played nine holes. My play was atrocious, but like Utah weather there were glimpses of something nice. i putted especially well.

After golf we threw a couple of steaks on the bar b que. A little sangria, and settled in to watch ‘Treme’ (one of the best shows imho, an American original – much like the city it portrays). As we watched, i had opened the door to the back patio. The sun was out, but we heard the tell-tale patter of big drops on the awning. Rain, accompanied by intermittent thunder and lightning.

i went on the back patio to see which direction the lightning was happening, and i saw it

rainbow

rainbow

In the West, threatening clouds gray and menacing. In the East, the last rays on the mountain and a rainbow. A pretty way to end the first week in June . . .

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Memorial Day weekend, 2010

Memorial Day sunrise

Memorial Day sunrise

From last year, a picture of our flag. This year, i spent time at Wheeler farm on Saturday, and we went to Wendover Sunday. We are going golfing today, and all in all welcome the unofficial beginning of summer.

Wheeler Farm is right in the middle of Salt Lake valley. They have done a good job of preserving what farm life was like here, so many years ago.

Wheeler Farm

Wheeler Farm

The trip to Wendover (on the ‘Fun Bus’ – two words that don’t belong in a sentence together) was fairly uneventful and gave us a chance to throw away $200 with nothing to show for it. Another reason to love our country. Wendover the town straddles the state line of Nevada and Utah, and owes it’s existence t0 the fact that gambling is illegal here. It’s a hundred miles west of Salt Lake City and the drive is so boring that someone actually built a tree in the salt flat.

Wendover Tree

Wendover Tree

So, although spring is still on the calender, summer kicks off with a pause to remember who made this all possible.

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The first week of May – good news, bad news

The good news is springs almost here, and the Jazz are still playing. The bad news is, it’s the first week of May and springs not quite here, and the Jazz are done. OK, basketball fan, i know they’re not eliminated yet, but down 3 – 0 i doubt they’ll win four in a row. Especially against the defending champs.

tipoff

tipoff

Tania and i went to the game.

At the game

At the game

It was fun for what it was, the swan song to the 2009/2010 season. We had seen seven (i went to another, but that’s a post for another time) in a package, some electrifying and some ho-hum, and we really thought even short handed the home team would beat the champs at least once. After all, the beat the hated rivals to make it this far . . .

Oh well, it’s one way to say sayanora to a season and welcome another. Good bye basketball and hello golf.

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May Day

Today was the first in a new month, and for Tania, the first in a new year. My wife celebrated a birthday. By ‘celebrate’ i mean she went shopping all day. When she came home, we went out for a nice dinner.

Tuscany

Tuscany

A restaurant in the south east corner of the valley, Tuscany specializes in Italian fare, notably from the region it was named after. They served one of the best pork chops i have ever had. Tania went with the four cheese ravioli, and i could tell it was made with care.

Happy Birthday Tania, and thanks for sharing it with me.

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One week in April

At the end of this work week, i look back and think about the week before. The national championship for collegiate basketball had been decided, with a decided favorite winning it all amid multiple upsets. Spring finally sprung, although we had driven hundreds of miles to get our first taste of it. And like the swallows returning to San Juan Capristrano, the Masters’ Tournament was played in Georgia.

Ironically, one of the first pictures i came across was Phil Mickleson fitting the green jacket on Tiger Woods. i decided to use the image, for the irony.

We had gone to Zion National Park for a four day weekend. For the first time since we married, those four days were the same that the golf tournament was played. i do not regret committing to going during those particular days, for the park is truly awe inspiring. Thanks to some new boots for Tania and some early starts, we were able to see both the park and the tournament.

The Watchman

The Watchman

If you’ve never been to Zion National Park, i urge you to go. just not during spring break.

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A rivet gun, the Moon, and a Tiger

i went to the Home DepotĀ® Saturday and bought a gun. The weather still isn’t nice enough to work in the garage, and before that happens, so must ‘spring cleaning’. It’s ok though, i have been busy with my home network and trying to understand Windows 7. i plan on getting certified for the new Microsoft operating system, and this weekend i had some success re-installing it on this machine, and getting to attach to my server. So in the meantime work on my new PC will have to wait.

Friday i went to our satellite office in Heber. As i made my way into the valley, i was struck by how big the moon looked.

Moon over Mt. Timp

Moon over Mt. Timp

It was lightly snowing as i went up the canyon, and it had broken by the time i got there. further proof that you’ll never know when you’ll want your camera . . .

This week marks the true beginning of spring – they’ll play the Master’s Tournament. A annual passage and golfs first ‘major’, this year will have Tiger Woods but it won’t have me. We are off the Zion’s National Park for a long weekend, and i eagerly await the chance to get warm, take pictures, be out of town, and see this wonder for myself.

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Spring Time . . .

For three straight days i was able to take pictures. The days were Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. It turns out that the day we bought new cars was the first day of Spring.

His and Hers

His and Hers

The red Corolla had a hundred thousand miles on it. We decided now was a good time to trade it in. Little did we know, that Tania would be offered a position with a local company, and she would need to drive further than i. Toyota offered a no interest deal that made taking on car payments again worth it. It’s what we did Saturday, the first day of Spring.

So Sunday we got into our new Corolla and went out to the Great Salt Lake. Having lived here almost nineteen years, i can say i’ve not spent a lot of time at our counties’ namesake. We loaded up the tripods and cameras, and drove to SaltAir. It was closed, and locked up. We went to the marina for a bit, and found, down the road a ways, an abandoned building and burnt out rail car.

GSL3_21

GSL3_21

Both days were nice, Utah spring weather. Which brings us to Monday, and honestly i couldn’t tell you what the weather was like – i spent the day indoors. We went to a Jazz game Monday night, against the Boston Celtics. It was a good game, and until the second half, one that looked like the Celtics would win.

Tip off

Tip off

So for three straight days we did three different things, and got to take pictures too. i hope this is how spring always is, or in other words, hope springs eternal . . .

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the Ides of March

It’s snowing outside at the moment, the day to wear green has come and gone, and the Madness sets in.
St Patrick's Day

St Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s Day found us sitting in a bar not far from home, me eating corned beef and cabbage. Tania wussed out and had a salad, and then we went home and watched the Jazz game. i made my picks for this year’s bracket, and couldn’t tell you why i chose who i did. i got lucky the first day and only lost one Sweet Sixteen team.

Cabin fever is at it’s worst for me right now. we have talked about getting out of town for a weekend, and even though i know summer will be long and hot, i still feel i would enjoy mowing the yard right now. Come on lottery numbers!

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Sports Photography

So the wife and i went to a Jazz game. It was a pretty solid game, offensively; one hundred points half way into the third quarter. We’ve been to four games this season, what was different about this one was we sneaked Tania’s camera in. Ok, they actually check your bags at the door, we just made it look small.

We took off the battery grip, put the battery door back on (don’t ask what that took) and put on her father’s 18-200mm lense. All in all, it did pretty well

Jazz vs Rockets

Jazz vs Rockets

After the game, we went to take more pictures. First, we got chased out of the parking garage across from the Delta Center. We almost went home, but noticed the Capitol Building, and went there instead.

View from the Steps

View from the Steps

i was up til three editing pictures last night. And would have stayed up later, but i ran out . . .

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