With company in town, it’s been several days since I’ve contributed to this blog. I’ve been stuck on post number 2006 and events of that related life-year, as I shared memories with a hometown friend that has been around since grade school at Beardsley School 1962. He told me that the “Bombers” nickname was changed to “Bulldogs.” I was formerly a Rice “Krispie” before we moved to a new neighborhood. Rice was torn down years ago and Beardsley is in a new location. Everything has changed, even our High School lost its unique nickname. The “Blue Blazers” are now the “Lions.”
It’s “Matinee Monday” and “Patriot’s Day” but we can’t fit a movie into our busy schedule. I was pushed on my run this morning (more than a minute a mile faster) by a neighbor, as we talked about today’s Boston Marathon, something that he has run 15 times. I never qualified but ran the course one day when I was visiting another high school friend. I’m now sitting in my office watching the latest episode of “Winning Time.” I also won at Wordle this morning, after my first loss yesterday following 29-straight.
I have to correct my Amtrak reservation that I made last week. I needed a means to get from Portland to Vancouver BC this September where we’ll catch the Viking Cruise to Alaska/Japan. We always enjoyed the route into Seattle for ball games. As it turns out, the train trip included a leg by bus from Seattle to BC and my wife objected. Apparently, with border restrictions and limited schedules, the train no longer runs directly into the Vancouver station. Instead, we’ll use Alaska points to fly, fitting more closely with the rest of this luxurious adventure. After all, we’re flying First Class from Tampa to Portland and have a suite aboard the ship. She’s right, stop the bus?
Almost every year has its unforgettable moments. In 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas upon re-entry, killing all seven astronauts on board. I watched on a TV in the lobby of an Indianapolis agency, wondering if it was another terrorist strike? It was also the year that made Cubs fan Steve Bartman famous when he supposedly interfered with a potential out against the Marlins in a Playoff game. The Marlins went on to win the World Series and Bartman was lucky to escape with his life. We were coming back from Hawaii and in the airport when I saw the Cubs collapse. We would have to wait another 13-years for the Cubs World Series curse to finally end after a 108-year draught.
The Cubs are on TV this afternoon as we head to Sarasota for the van Gogh exhibit. I guess I can give up a day of baseball for a little culture, although to me the game is culture. Our 2016 Wrigley Field World Series tickets are mounted on the home office wall next to me, along with the baseball cards of 1908 Cubs stars Tinker, Evers, and Chance, who took the crown in the early years. The cards of Rizzo, Russell, and Baez who were the modern-day version of the double-play trio, are encased next to them. All three of these Cubs stars are no longer with the team in the five years that have passed and most of the current lineup is unrecognizable.
I did not sleep well last night, although it was nothing in particular that was bothering me. My mind was busy thinking about being gone from home for two full weeks and the preparations necessary. It’s mostly silly things like this that keep me awake in retirement, and most of the things I worry about never happen. We’ll be gone for another two weeks in July/August, a whole month in September/October, and two more weeks in December. We have at least ten weeks of travel ahead in the 37-weeks remaining this year. It will undoubtedly be the busiest year of travel in our lives, if not affected by Covid, fires, work stoppages, border restrictions, or cancellations that have plagued our first few years of joint retirement. We’ll spend some time on the beach, fly cross-country, cruise from Alaska to Japan, drive 3,000 miles through the Midwest, and end up in Kauai with family to end this eventful year. I doubt that we’ll ever be this active again, although next year calls for a drive to Maine and an adventure down the Nile. Let’s keep our fingers crossed, again! (See Posts #1329 and #1877)
I was baby sitting for my nearly 4-year old granddaughter this morning, as will be the case tomorrow. I finally got to sit down at the keyboard late this afternoon, after a doctor’s appointment and several errands. With the rain and responsibilities, there was also no time for the usual 5k, but at least I got in the minimum mile, extending my streak to 4,834 consecutive days. As I drove around town, I also picked up our remaining light fixtures for the front entry and great room, so my son can get to work on the wiring. One was in a huge box that barely fit in my back seat with the convertible top down. The 2007 Solara served as a pick-up truck once again, as it approaches 150,000 miles.
The first mobile phones were introduced by Motorola in 1983. It’s hard to believe that we lived without them and the Internet all those years. I used a CB radio for communication back in my early days of radio. Pay phones also played an important role in keeping up with client demands. A bag phone soon followed before I got my first flip phone that I could carry on a regular basis. A Palm Pilot served as my organizer once I abandoned Daytimers. Nowadays, everything is on my phone and I’m never without it.
I’m watching the Cubs play the Angels on TV as Spring Training finally gets into full swing. I’ve already been to one game at the neighborhood Cool Today Stadium, the Spring Training headquarters for the World Champion Atlanta Braves. I have tickets for two more games against the Rays, with Grapefruit League activities extended thru April 5th. I just turned down tickets for the Yankees at Cardinals in August, and plan to go to Tampa in June for the Rays/White Sox series. We also made plans for Cactus League Spring Training in Phoenix next March that may be the next opportunity to see the Cubs live. I doubt that we get to Wrigley Field in 2022, let alone Chicago. I will keep an eye out if the boys plan another Cardinal baseball trip at some point during the season, but I’m sure that we will be exhausted from all our already planned cool travel activities.
I’m back in the saddle – my home office chair – after 3 days in Key West. It was a nice break from the routine, but I’m always glad to be back in my own bed, running the familiar route, and writing at my desk. We spent yesterday wandering the Key West side streets and waiting patiently for breakfast at Blue Heaven. The town is all about Ernest Hemmingway and the places he frequented. There is the annual Papa look-alike contest every year at Sloppy Joe’s where he spent much of his leisure time, a whiskey named after his boat, Pilar, his polydactyly cats, and Blue Heaven where he refereed boxing matches.
We never got to Better Than Sex after too much rich food, key lime pie, and alcohol. We enjoyed Twos-day 2/22/22 and smiled at men in tutus celebrating tutu Tuesday. It was every bit as weird as Austin and Portland on any given day of the week. The sunsets were beautiful especially when you sat on a floating tiki hut. Music filled the air, in the vicinity of Jimmy Buffet’s recording studio where he once sang about Caroline Street and Margaritaville. It was also National Margarita Day, adding to the festivities on Duval Street, where his original restaurant sits. In three short days, we saw a manatee, lots of plastic sharks, parrots, pirates, six-toed cats, tarpons feeding, roosters, chickens, seagulls, flamingos, pelicans, dogs, jugglers, acrobats, and street musicians. My wife was attacked by a hungry gypsy chicken that jumped on her back out of nowhere.
I had my last margarita at the Boat House on the marina boardwalk just before our ferry back to Ft. Myers departed. The terminal was near Alonzo’s where we had dinner our first night. Most of the fellow passengers were still in full party mode on the way back, as we caught our last sunset from the deck. Once it was dark, I watched bits and pieces of the movie Ford vs. Ferrari, hoping for a nap that never happened. The hour-and-a-half drive into Venice got us home before midnight and back in the saddle again.
No problem getting in the door this morning (See Post #1956). Another short one-mile run, with plans again to do a lot of walking. We covered a great deal of ground yesterday, starting with a boat ride from behind our hotel to the Conch Train terminal. We then toured the Hemingway house and saw the six-toed cats, followed by lunch at La Te Da. After eating, we walked to the Southernmost point, took pictures of the giant buoy, went through the Butterfly Conservatory (Rhett & Scarlett their famous pink flamingos), and shared some key lime pie at the original bakery.
A second bumpy stint on the Conch Train took us to the Mel Fisher Treasure Museum and eventually to party central, two hundred packed Duval Street bars crammed together in several blocks. We chose Sloppy Joe’s for drinks and music. It was my wife’s favorite on her college trip to Key West, before making our way to the popular sunset party at Mallory Park. We finished the day walking to Ocean Grill & Bar for fettuccini, and to the Marriott Shuttle stop that brought us back full-circle to the hotel.
I ended the evening on a sour note, turning the TV on just in time to watch the IU basketball collapse against Ohio State. After five straight losses, it’s sadly become a familiar story. The women’s team had a similar fate down the stretch, while baseball lost their first three games of the season to Clemson. Consequently, I’ve seen no one touting Hoosier (Loser) gear down here in Key West.
We catch the ferry back to Ft. Myers tonight. We’ll check-out of the Marriott in an hour or so and take a boat to the terminal to drop our luggage. I would like to go to Blue Heaven to eat, but we’ll see where the day leaves us and what the boss has in mind. I’m just along for the ride!
I’m on the second day of my blogcation – down in Key West. I would call it a vacation, but those no longer exist in retirement. Instead, it’s a vacation from sitting at my writing desk every morning and instead utilizing my phone to make notes. As far as such daily routines, you can be assured that one thing never changes, except the view and the distance, when it comes to “The Streak.” This morning’s run took me along the waterfront, but there was a stiff breeze coming back. I had decided to do just the minimum mile in anticipation of a lot of walking this afternoon. We will cover all the Key West hot spots as discussed in yesterday’s yet to be published report. (See Post #1955). On Wednesday when we get home, I’ll file all four accounts of our journey.
I had one of those lost moments upon returning to our Marriott hotel an hour ago. All the buildings suddenly looked the same and I couldn’t get my room key card to work. I tried calling my wife, but she didn’t pick-up, so I then logically retraced my steps. I ended up in front of the same door and once again it failed to open. The electronic key had worked on the security gate and even the elevator but not on the outside door that granted access to two separate rooms, one of which should have been ours. I went to a similar door down the hall and at least got a flashing red light. Trying again, there was no red or green indication from our supposed entrance. As it turned out, the outside door was slightly ajar but stuck, so when I pushed harder it opened. Our door just inside thankfully worked fine.
For a moment there, I wasn’t sure what to do. I had no ID – just my phone – so I couldn’t easily go to the front desk for a replacement. At one point, I just sat down to gather my thoughts. I had already jogged and climbed up and down three flights of stairs several times trying to get oriented. When I finally used the familiar elevator route, I knew I was in the right place – not the Twilight Zone.
Up at 3:30 a.m. before the alarm went off, I was still a bit tipsy from last night’s wine pairing dinner. It was dark and lonely on the neighborhood streets during my run. Our pup was at Schnauzerville, so there was no warm-up walk, just the usual sit-ups, push-ups, and stretches to get me going. It was then an hour-and-a-half drive to Ft. Myers Beach to catch the Key West Express. We made one stop for an Egg McMuffin for early morning nourishment.
My wife is asleep in the seat directly across from me. We had arrived early to get a good spot, but I left my wallet it in the parked car, having failed to get it securely in my back pocket. It was a good thing they asked for ID before boarding otherwise I would not have had it for the trip. No credit cards, driver’s license, or cash.
It’s about a 3-hour cruise that should be simple enough, unless you’re Gilligan. It’s about 3 miles from our port to the Marriott Beachside. In the vicinity are the Hemingway Home, Harry Truman’s Little White House, Southernmost Point, the Butterfly Conservatory, and the Mel Fisher Museum, five of our target destinations. I would also like to have breakfast at Blue Heaven and maybe dessert at Better than Sex.
This Day in History – June 6, 1944, The United States and allied troops invaded at Normandy. This was the largest air, land, and sea invasion in history. The goal was to surprise Germany, but Germany was ready to fight. It was the beginning of the end of World War II.
We were at the neighborhood meet and greet this past weekend and had a discussion about cruises with some folks down the street. They are taking the Viking river cruise from Paris to Normandy that we took several years ago. I was telling them how Normandy became my favorite segment of the trip and how emotional it was for us. Both my dad and my wife’s father were there and fortunately did not become another white cross. They came back to the States and raised families, creating a bond with each other that they never dreamed of at that time of battle. Sadly, my wife’s dad never lived to see our wedding day, but I did get the chance to ask for his approval.
I’m looking forward to our September Viking cruise from Vancouver to Tokyo. Covid took away voyages from Spain to Norway and Russia to Finland. It also kept us from going to Bali, Tahoe and Hawaii and delayed the river cruise to Egypt. With the savings, we’ve put a few extras in our new Florida home – luxuries instead of memories.
Two eventful things happened in 1931. First, the Star-Spangled Banner is adopted as the United States national anthem. Secondly, on St. Patrick’s Day, Nevada legalized gambling and the party has never stopped. Vegas has always been a fun break from real life as recounted in Post #350, written back in 2017. I’ve been there only once since (See Post #1220). The Covid threat struck at that time and I’m not so sure that the cough I left with was not related. I certainly didn’t leave with any winnings and the world began to quickly shut down. Our next stop was Arizona as the event cancellations started to take place – No Spring Training, no restaurant dining, no concerts, and no going anywhere without a mask.
It now seems like a lifetime since we’ve been to Las Vegas, and with Valentine’s Day (See Post #1223) just around the corner, we should be there. It’s where our marriage began nearly 21-years ago in April. There’s a very classy Marriott Vacation Club near the strip that we’ve been anxious to stay at for a short getaway. Flights are always cheap to Vegas but food and gambling is costly. I doubt that we get there this year with friends and family coming to visit and other travel plans in the works. However, I can still dream about Vegas Nights, even though my last memory is a Barry Manilow concert.
My wife wants to see Lady Gaga in Vegas. In October of 2021, after a 652-day Covid hiatus, she returned to the newly minted Dolby Live theater at Park MGM. At the first performance, she’s quoted as saying, “many of you still have your masks on and some of you don’t, and I think it is nice not to judge each other and let’s just try to have some fun … please feel free to take off your masks and dance, just stay six feet away from each other.” The website I just visited listed dates for 2071, but I think that’s a mistake. Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta would be 85 with my wife and I well in our hundreds. Seeing her then may be just as unlikely as getting tickets in the next few years, with performances at Wrigley Field and Fenway Park recently postponed. It’s simply a Las Vegas Dream!
On June 19,1926, DeFord Bailey became the first African-American to perform on Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry. The Opry house has since moved to Opryland, but the historic Ryman Theater, that housed the Opry acts through 1974, is celebrating its 130th anniversary. It will be part of our summer tour up through the Midwest that also includes Panama City, Tuscaloosa, Indianapolis, Mackinac Island, Cleveland, Canton, Asheville, and Hilton Head. We plan to take the Nash Trash Tour, a comedy show on wheels through the key sights of the city on that Tennessee stop along the way. A night at the famous Grand Hotel is our ultimate destination, and the northernmost point on our drive. Other Michigan city destinations will include Ludington, Petoskey, and Traverse City.
We just returned from Vanderbilt Beach and Bonita Springs after an overnight stay with Indy friends and lunch with hometown Elkhart acquaintances. My wife is hosting a bridge club this afternoon, while I try to figure out what happened to my whiskey delivery from Flaviar? They report it delivered and signed for two weeks ago. I have video of the delivery person who set off my Ring doorbell and walked away with the box since no one was home. It required a signature, so I’ve been waiting for the second attempt, but Sonic Transportation claims the delivery was made. Someone will probably lose their job over this, but I hope they enjoyed my spirits.
I probably would have needed that sedative spirit tonight for the I.U. vs. Purdue basketball game, but I have other liquids to ease the pain. I have a bad feeling about this one after nine straight Hoosier losses. It will be tough for the Hoosier big men, TJD, Durr, and Race, to contain the #4-ranked Boiler twin towers of Williams and Edey. The “Good Guys in Crimson” also have Jaden Ivey and Sasha Stefanovic in Black & Gold to contend with on the perimeter. I’m certainly tired of losing to Purdue, and the only hope is that IU has not yet been defeated at home this season. When I most desperately need them – Where are my spirits?
