Every so often I hear a record that is so good and so confident in the choices that I’m compelled to replay it over and over. David Nance & Mowed Sound has been in the heaviest of Heavy Rotations for me lately. Like Steve Gunn with his Allman Brothers sliders goosed a little bit. There is so much cool guitar on this record!
fun new watchband for summer!
I branched out a bit with the Crown and Buckle choice this time. I am giving a non-NATO strap a try. So far so good. It reduces the profile a little bit, so the watch fits better under shirts with tight cuffs.
Sunday USTA
I got added to a 3.5 roster this summer (I am a 3.0 player, so a 3.5 team is the next level up) and I have been lucky(?) to get a couple of matches because so many of the other folks have scheduling conflicts. This morning’s match was inside, in an effort to hide from the sun. So while we were, in fact, spared the sun, the dead and humid air inside was so much worse for me. I had trouble holding the racquet and eventually wilted from the heat. We lost 4-6, 0-6. I’m 0-3 in this league so far. It makes some sense, because I’m playing against better players, but man it’s a bummer to get repeatedly worked.
Summer Adventures 1
It’s been a sweaty time here in the RVA this summer. I’ve been trying to get out and do/see some cool stuff, but then I can only post about it if I get some photos. I try to spend my time practicing gratitude and manifesting abundance, you know, the classics, so it’s been a while between posts.
I’ve decided to try to play some more golf this year, and that’s what that photo up there is about. I usually play one round a year, that I get as a birthday present. For 2024, I took some steps to get a little more “serious”. I got my clubs re-gripped, so they’re closer to an appropriate size for my dumb paws. I’ve also hit the range a couple of times to practice. I’ve played twice this year already, which has been great for me. I’m a poor golfer, but I know the rules (and etiquette) and I play fast and I’m good for some laughs, so I’m welcome as a 4th with better golfers.
It also helps that a person can have a couple of cold pops during a round. I especially enjoy a sport where a beer or two isn’t going to hurt, and might even help.
The Last Lunch Bag
Sometime in the early 2010’s, my kids were getting ready to start summer day camp and they’d need to pack a lunch every day.
Rather than getting lunchboxes that would either get lost or impossibly dirty at camp, my wife bought a box of brown paper lunch bags. Classics.
There were 500 of them. Now, after a dozen years, this is the last of them, dutifully carrying my sandwich and apple for lunch today.
Big Day for me in Sports History
May 7th is a day that holds a couple of key memories for me, sports-wise.
Bartolo Colon’s only career home run cemented his status as a folk hero for the New York Mets and for me as a fully-portioned gentleman athlete. I still get some goosebumps when I watch it.
May 7th was also the date for the one of the greatest comebacks in the history of sport. Liverpool erased a 0-3 deficit in the 2nd leg of the Champions League semi-final to win over Leo Messi’s Barcelona, punctuated by Divock Origi scoring on Trent Alexander-Arnold’s corner taken quickly.
I still watch this a couple of times a year. It gets me every time.
Bonsai gang survived the winter
It’s Springtime-y as hell here. There was a frost warning three days ago and it’s going to be 80 this weekend. That was the last of the cold-cold, though, so I took these bonsai bros out from their winter cover and I’m going to set them up in their homes for the season. The azalea needs some partial shade and the fir gets full-blast sunshine. I was able to rely on rain/snow for winter watering, but I’m going to have to get back on my daily check-ins as things warm up.
I’m not even worried that the azalea didn’t bloom. It feels sturdy as hell and the leaves are strong and a great green. Maybe I’ll get a bloom or two? If I do, I’ll def. post them here.
This little fir, which was already trimmed up bonsai-style, got nice and wooly. I’m inclined to give it a year of regular growing and I’ll take a look at some pruning later this year.
I can see your house from up here.
We go through bouts of travel a couple of times a year. It’s nice to be other places.
Back soon!
Big Norfolk Weekend
Had occasion to catch the end-of-semester dance show at ODU. I’ve seen a lot of these over the years and they’re almost always a great time. College dance majors are on a different level.
And since we’re in baseball season, we hopped over to the ballpark to see the AAA Norfolk Tides take on the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders. The Tides are apparently loaded, so we didn’t want to miss a game full of future major-leaguers.
Tulips are here.
It’s always exciting when these bulbs come up. They’re huge.