Reno Trip, Old Chicago Prize, other junk

Reno trip was productive if not all that fun. I spent frantic time with Winter which is always interesting if not exactly relaxing. I managed to have dinner with Robert and Stef though I'd have liked to spend more time with them. I did sleep in Sacramento 3 nights out of 4 so that saved me a buck or two. I got my first prize on the Old Chicago World Beer Tour. I drank 10 beers (over 3 or 4 months) to earn a deck of cards. Dad had his 65th birthday. I failed to send a timely gift but he should look for a box sometime soon. I got the new cd by "The New Pornographers" and give to good marks. Definitely some very good spins! I also pre-purchased the new Sara Mcglothlin remix disc on account of I really like her stuff. Yuki is a happy animal.

During the trip to the left coast, I went to Monterey, California. It was very cool. Home of Steinbeck's Canary Row. A very neat area. Robert, if you've never been you must make a weekend trip of it with Stef. I ate at a Mexican place where you can see the sea otters playing on the rocks. Awesome view.

In breaking news there is a Christian group that wants the "theory of gravity" taught in many grade school text books to be replaced with the idea of "intelligent falling".

Also, scientists who used decades' worth of earthquake data to study the planet's center say their information proves decisively that Earth's core spins faster than the outer crust. Along side this new discovery, President Bush feels people should also be told that the core doesn't spin faster than the outer crust.

Reno Bound

I'm headed for Robert's neck of the woods tomorrow. I got the Mini Cooper. It's totally fun to drive! I'm really gonna dig it. I've been eating the first installment of my 5 month Harry & David fruit of the month club. Delicious nectarines!!! Yummmm!!!
I had pizza in Chicago at Genos East. Very good stuff! The pies can be ordered online and shipped all over the US. Treat yourself to a thick Chicago pie!

Fantasy Draft Results

2005 Beagles Draft Picks
* - still need to pick up a kicker at some point

Pos Player
QB David Carr
QB Kerry Collins
RB Shaun Alexander
RB Kevan Barlow
RB LaMont Jordan
RB J.J. Arrington(r)
RB Eric Shelton(r)
WR Rod Smith
WR Ashley Lelie
WR Marcus Robinson
WR Santana Moss
WR Antonio Bryant
WR Reggie Brown(r)
TE Dallas Clark
TM Seahawks

Eagles...or Beagles

08.20.05 - Lake Tahoe, NV
Venue: Harveys Outdoor Amphitheater
SOLD OUT

While the weasel will be driving home in his new Mini Steph and I will be on our way to Tahoe to see the Eagles . . . that's the band the Eagles. Not a pre-season football game featuring the team from Philly. We got our tickets off of eBay so cross your fingers that they are good. They look like they are...they are still connected together and one has a green ad on the back while the other has orange. Seems like they would be harder to duplicate in that form.

I've been preparing for the fantasy football draft which takes place tomorrow as well. This is the Pittsburgh Fantasy Football league which my team, The Beagles has won twice including last year. This year is likely to be quite challenging given that I have the last draft pick.

I'm buying this on Saturday

It's an '03 Mini Cooper with 33,000 miles! I had been lowballing some ebay motors auction minis to no avail. The dealer contacted me on this one and we talked $ for this and for my civic trade. We finally hit common ground. I'm picking it up in Illinois this weekend. A little risky, but hey, it's the car I want at the price I want and it still has a year of warranty. Whee!

Mullins' Mix

Thanx to Danny Mullins, who taught this to my late brother Dave back in the 1960's.

Combine old-fashioned Tide laundry detergent, gasoline, and warm water in equal volumes; use about a cup of each in something like a small plastic bucket. Mix for a minute or so; it should look about like white gravy. Wet the bike and slop the mix on it with a paintbrush. I usually avoid the painted surfaces of the bike, but brush liberally on wheels, engine, forks, etc. Let it dry completely, then hose it off with a pressure nozzle. Repeat for extreme cases.

Dad and Carol go to Minnesota and other points north.

We spent a little time in Chicago. I'm a Frank Lloyd Wright fan,
and we saw several of his houses in Oak Park, a neighborhood
of Chicago where Wright lived and worked 1890-1910.
We had a good hot dog for $3 and a nice room in Oak Park for
just $150 per night.

I was born in Hollandale, Minnesota, currently home to about 300 souls.
We had a cool one at Slick Willy's, a nice downtown tavern in Hollandale.

The house in Charles City, Iowa where I lived in 1946.
It is pretty much the worst house in town.

Carol at Garrison Keeler's digs in St. Paul

We also did the Mall of America, where I walked into
all four Gap stores.

Desolation Wilderness, California - August 7, 2005

I decided to take the beagles hiking in Desolation Wilderness which is the name attributed to the Sierra Nevada Mountains immediately Southwest of Lake Tahoe. Beautiful country.

NOTE: Photos are from my Nikon D70 - click on any of them for a few screen view.

Fast facts:
Total trip time: 11 hours
Total hiking time: 7 hours
Total hiking distance: 10 miles
Vertical Feet Gain: 2000

We left at 8:20 in the morning and made it to the Vikingsholm parking area and started our hike at 10:20. Vikingsholm is an interesting place. An small island in Emerald Bay, it is quite unique. We had to park there because parking in and around the Eagle Lake Trailhead was crazy with nothing available.
Here's a picture of the island with the castle. This is the only island in Lake Tahoe.

So the hike begins and it is very crowded as expected for the first mile or so to Eagle Lake. There was a forest ranger at the lake who kind of harrassed me about the beagles and about having a permit. I was clean and the beagles were legal so we continued our journey after a brief stay at Eagle Lake. The next mile or so up to the Bayview Trail junction is meaty - the hike begins at 6600 feet and climbs to 8220 during this initial 2 mile portion.

I was still debating my route with basically three options: follow Bayview and essentially head back, the Velma lakes or Dicks Lake. It was too early to turn back so we continued on and I decided to head towards Dicks Lake. The beagles were doing well. Here's a snap of them along the journey.
Having never been to Dicks lake before I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I was a bit surprised to see a far number of snow fields which was kind of exciting. I made it a stretch goal to visit one of these snow fields, knowing that they often appear closer and easier to reach than truly meets the eye. Here's my first view of snow fields.



We started to get hungry so we stopped for lunch around 1pm. It was an exciting meal purchased the prior afternoon at Trader Joes. Jerky, Clif Bar, cookies and dog biscuits.

As we began the descent towards Dicks Lake I saw it! A snow field that seemed to be reasonably close. I decided to screw the lake and head off the trail for the snow. I piled some rocks up to mark the trail and took off. Here's the snow field after about 15 minutes of "off trail" hiking.



I'd been deceived on the distance and how hard it would be. The beagles and I were literally jumping from boulder to boulder and this is one of the first times I've seen Kodak actually scared. I considered turning back on several occasions but decided to plow on.



Made it! It was neat to see how fast the snow was melting. The temperature was in the 70's. I threw some snow on the beagles and quicly turned around for the journey back. I had no idea where the trail was (my rockpile idea was a complete failure) and it took me us about 30 minutes of random hiking to finally stumble upon a creek which we follow back to the trail. It's kind of a scary feeling to be roaming around in the wilderness. I had a map and compass however and new generally where I was. Four hours into the hike I found the trail and we headed back. Here's one of my favorite snaps from the area:



The beagles were beginning to show some signs of wear so we stopped twice for decent breaks. The hike back down the Bayview trail features the best view of Tahoe. Ranger seemed to be infatuated with the awesome view of Emerald Bay and Lake Tahoe as well.



All in all, this is it was a fun and relaxing hike. The last time we had done this was a vacation day post 9-11. Certainly more peaceful thoughts this time.

Dad Quoted

"We've tried to put together a system that meets the basic needs, basic services that need to be met in the city," Copeland concluded. "So we tried to devise routes that cover the hospitals, cover the shopping areas, cover the basic services. We tried to cover areas that would be quality-of-life areas."

Not everyone who was present at the sparsely attended meeting agreed that the city needs a transit system.

"When I moved to Jonesboro in 1970, the sales tax was 3 percent; now it's 8 percent," said Richard Tangeman. "The demand for public services goes hand in hand with more taxes and bigger government."

Tangeman said friends and family should help those who need transportation. "This place is a town here -- we're not your mom and dad."

The '86 Honda Magna

Here are a couple of snaps of the '86 Magna a friend of mine snapped up for $800 this past week-end. The bike is in reasonable shape I think. We're going to do the general maintenance this week-end. Dad - if you could post the recipe for Mullin's Mix it would be appeciated. Steph isn't a huge fan of the bike but I really don't plan to ride it on the highways out here. Strictly a back road cruiser type bike.

Concert review

We're there getting a beer and some nachos when the show starts. As I assumed, Brian Adams was going first. I found a good seat in the right infield to enjoy the show. Adams was playing his guitar and there was a drummer. No other band. He was playing some song I'd never heard. Adams is like 3 songs in and he STILL hasn't done one of his hits. I start screaming "DO SUMMER OF 69!!'" He continues to do songs I've never heard of. Then he announces he's going to do one more song. Huh! He's been playing for like 25 minutes! "DO A HIT!!" I scream. He does some lousy cover song. I feel screwed and ripped off. BRIAN ADAMS SUCKS!! I go for another beer and discuss the disappointment with the beer guy. Oops. Turns out that guy wasn't Brian Adams but some local warm up act. The guy wore blue jeans and a t-shirt and had the Brian Adams look. No wonder those people around me had been looking at me funny.

Then Def Leppard takes the stage!!! We crowd the mosh pit and it's close to 2 hours of the best band to to come out of the 80's! Fantastic! If you ever get a chance to see these guys. GO! THEN Brian Adams actually takes the stage. Some guy behind me is screaming "Fuck Canada"! Brian fires up and really put on a great show! This guy is really good. He did tons of his hits...including Summer of 69'. I remember when Adams played the then new pyramid in Memphis and some guy fell from the upper stands and died.

I picked up this awesome vintage Def Leppard T-shirt too!

-Bill

Tonight; Def Leppard and Brian Adams!

Should be a rocking 80's good time!

Something to Bookmark

Wikipedia is a good web-based encyclopedia where you can cull some useful information. One of the neat things about this web-pedia is that it is mainained by the world's population. You can tweak or add anything you want. Here is what it has to say about Kearney, Nebraska. I added the sentence about the Arch...we'll see if it stays...or if someone removes it later :)

Kearney is a city located in Buffalo County, Nebraska. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 27,431. It is the county seat of Buffalo County6. It is the location of University of Nebraska at Kearney. Kearney is also the location of the Museum of Nebraska Art, home of the state's official art collection. A more recent addition to the Kearney landscape is the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument spanning Interstate 80. The city was named after nearby Fort Kearny (sic), a United States Army outpost along the Oregon Trail in the middle 19th century that was itself named after Stephen W. Kearny.
[edit]

Geography

Kearney is located at 40°42'3" North, 99°4'52" West (40.700731, -99.081150)1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 29.0 km² (11.2 mi²). 28.4 km² (11.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.6 km² (0.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.96% water.
[edit]

Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there are 27,431 people, 10,549 households, and 6,160 families residing in the city. The population density is 964.6/km² (2,498.5/mi²). There are 11,099 housing units at an average density of 390.3/km² (1,010.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 95.18% White, 0.63% African American, 0.38% Native American, 0.92% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.68% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. 4.08% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 10,549 households out of which 30.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.7% are married couples living together, 9.7% have a female householder with no husband present, and 41.6% are non-families. 28.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.37 and the average family size is 2.96.

In the city the population is spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 23.9% from 18 to 24, 26.2% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 27 years. For every 100 females there are 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 89.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $34,829, and the median income for a family is $46,650. Males have a median income of $30,150 versus $22,366 for females. The per capita income for the city is $17,713. 13.4% of the population and 7.4% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 11.8% of those under the age of 18 and 8.9% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Tom Tom Go!!!!

I was looking over some pictures I've taken over the last year. Here's one taken in Orlando as I was making my way to Tampa. As you can see, Tom Tom Go, the GPS device was on the job. You can see the crazy Mickey Mouse shaped telephone poles.

Night Night Lexi

We sold the Lexus yesterday and it is nice to be down to 2 cars again. We sold it to a lawyer and his wife in Sacramento for $15K which was a fair price for both of us and certainly met our expectations for what we had hoped to get out of it. It was right in line with Kelly Blue Book. We had talked with the Lexus dealer a week prior and they had offered us $11k on the spot claiming "all used cars are in Fair condition". The Lexus guy also, under his breath, recommended that we sell it ourselves and we would do much better.

Pokie the dog to meet maker

I had a trial today versus a man who failed to confine a vicious dog named Pokie. This dog ended up biting a 3 year old child riding his bike with his mother. I was successful and getting the death penalty for Pokie. Sad because I like dogs, but necessary. Reminds me of the time "Jet" the dog, who belonged to the Nortons across the street, bit me. I was standing in our yard and Jet came over and bit my arm. I also remember when our neighborhood was terrorized by that nasty Great Dane from the Lilly's neighborhood. Robert and I both had a few narrow escapes with that dog. I remember Mom shooting it with a bb gun when it would come around. As I recall it eventually ended up biting C.C. Siderinko and getting put down.

Bill eats a Six Dollar Burger

My friend Mullins has been raving about these things lately. I ate one when they first came out and got sick. This time, I did it without the mayo and it was a good eating experience. If you want to see more photos of the six dollar adventure, go to my homepage. There's a link to the right.

Bad News Bears spells bad news for moviegoers

I saw Bad News Bears. BIG mistake. This thing was barely watchable. The only reason I went was because I like Billy Bob Thornton. He had some good lines but other than that this thing sucked like few other films. DO NOT go see it. DO NOT rent it. DO NOT go anywhere near this dog.

Neil Diamond

Some friends of mine have an in for free tickets to the Neil Diamond concert in Omaha this coming Tuesday. SWEET CAROLINE! Looks like I'm going to see the last great American showman live and in person!

What I'm Listening to Right Now

Kind of a Blue Man Group meets Electronica sound.