Girls' Night Out, Birthday Weekend

By now most of my friends have heard me talk about Straight No Chaser. If you haven't, they are an amazing a cappella group that started at Indiana University, I think in 1996. I left town for college around then, but fortunately one of my friends introduced me to their music. I have been a fan ever since. Sadly I was a bit slow in figuring out they were back together. But I am thrilled that they have three Cd's out and have been on tour. I kept waiting to see if they would make it out west near me. They finally added Denver and Salt Lake City to their Fall tour. I ran into some difficulty at first getting Denver which was my first choice. So I went ahead and bought tickets for Salt Lake. Eventually I had the opportunity to get tickets for Denver. I was not sorry to have tickets in two cities bookending my birthday. I thought it sounded like the perfect way to celebrate. It was not meant to be though. The show in Salt Lake was canceled for reasons I'm still not sure about. But at least I had the tickets for Denver.

I flew over to Denver on Friday to spend the weekend with the family, spoil that adorable niece of mine and enjoy Girls' Night out at the Straight No Chaser concert with mom and Amber. I spent some time with Trinity on Saturday afternoon before it was time to head to Denver. We went down early to have dinner at a great Mexican restaurant that Amber loves. From there we fought through traffic to get to the show. I have seen a lot of the SNC videos from their concerts on Youtube but to see it live is amazing. They weren't even through the first half before I was wishing to see them again. If you get the opportunity to see them in concert you have to do it. They are an amazing group of guys with amazing voices. And they look like they are having so much fun up there. Plus the choreography is fabulous and worth a few laughs.

After the concert there was a meet and greet in the lobby. Since the Salt Lake show was canceled I had requested that I be allowed to stay. Fortunately mom and Amber were troopers. One of the reasons I was a fan when they first started is because Charlie went to my high school. He was one year ahead of me and I had always enjoyed watching him in our school musicals. We were never in any classes or activities together, but I knew who he was. So it was fun to support someone from North. (Plus the group is great.) I had never officially met Charlie but wanted to say hi after the show. Along the way I had the opportunity to talk to a couple of the other guys and get a photo with Mike. When I got to Charlie it turns out he recognized the last name because my brother was in his sister's class. Bloomington really is a small world outside of the University. We had a nice, quick chat before I moved along the line. I am definitely looking forward to my next opportunity to see SNC in concert. And if you haven't been yet you should definitely check them out!

Mike Luginbill & Me after the show

Me & Charlie Mechling (North H.S. Alumni)

Me & Mom post show

Me & Amber post show

Sunday was a quiet day after our late night. I made it over to the ranch in time to see Trinity after her morning nap. The little one is turning into a total ham. She hears a camera turning on and she starts smiling. It is adorable. Trinity is also a lot more flexible than I could ever have been. She was sitting in her swing pulling her feet up to her mouth. Impressive.

Trinity showing off her flexibility.

When it was time for Trinity's afternoon nap I ran back to pick up mom. We had dinner at the ranch and an early birthday celebration for me. Mom made my favorite dinner and Amber made a bourbon cheesecake. Yummy! I lucked out with the most fabulous gift from mom. Technically she had already gotten me one by paying for my flight to Denver. But she couldn't wait for Christmas so I received a Kindle as well. This is looking to be my new favorite toy. Chris, Amber and Trinity gave me a Gap gift card (part of my improvement project) and the Michael Luginbill cd I had on my wish list. Altogether a fabulous birthday celebration with the family.

Monday mom had to work before I left for the airport. So I dropped her off at school and went to the ranch. I got there in time to ride along to the doctor with Amber and Trinity. Fortunately it turned out that Trinity did not have an ear infection. She was quite a trooper with the doctor and fascinated by the mirror next to the table. We played around until it was time for her nap. I was able to stay until she was up for lunchtime. We were watching Amber make lunch when Trinity bumped her head on the window. I couldn't get her to stop crying and she wouldn't stop for Chris. She was starting to calm down a bit but still crying when I turned on the camera. I swear she turned around and smiled at me through the tears. I can't wait to see how much fun she will be around a camera as she gets bigger. Hopefully she never wants to hide like I usually do when a camera is near. Overall it was a fabulous trip and a great start to a birthday week.

Trinity & Me.

Happy Family

Broke the California Boycott

I moved to Utah from California four years ago. SO far no one has come to visit me. So I kept joking that I was going to boycott the state until someone (anyone) came to visit. And then it was announced that Brandi Chastain was having a testimonial game for her retirement. It was going to be a whose who of soccer players (and actors) that I had grown up cheering for. The time had come to break the boycott. Most of my friends won't be shocked that it was soccer that got me back to the state. It is still my first love when it comes to sports, even if I do not go to as many games living in Utah. (And yes, I know we have a pro team. Just not the same.)

I headed out to the bay area on a Thursday. Almost didn't make it. Somehow I mixed up the times in my head and thought I needed to be down at the airport before 7:30 to check in. In fact my flight was leaving at 7:30, so at 6:20 I was in a bit of panic driving down I-80. Fortunately I made the delayed flight. Sometimes you have to appreciate a delay. It worked out since my friend Nancy was running behind to pick me up. We managed to be on the same time table after all of that. Nancy and Kim had been kind enough to take me in and offer me the use of their car for the weekend so I didn't have to rent. It was super nice of them. On our way to Nancy's house she showed me a way to loop around to their street if you couldn't make the turn due to traffic. At the stop sign before you turned onto their road she said there is a good view there. But since it was dark I couldn't tell. The next morning I realized I had forgotten my directions. Since I couldn't back up I did the loop. Turns out that good view is looking across the bay at the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco. That is an amazing view!

Friday I drove down to the Cal State East Bay campus for a bit. Since everyone was busy I walked around and looked at some of the changes on campus. Then I headed out to Walnut Creek to meet up with Bri. We had survived grad school together and been the two girls who wanted careers in sports. It was so great to see her for a bit over lunch. I hope that sometime soon I'll convince her to come out to Utah.

Bri & Me after lunch

After lunch I raced straight back to CSUEB for the women's volleyball game. I had worked with the team when I lived in California. None of the players are the same but I still love the head coach and the one assistant I know. It was a great game and CSUEB came out with the win. Afterward I got to talk to Meg and Spagle. I had to give Spagle a hard time about having a tournament trip to Alaska after I left. Turns out I also missed the tourny trip to Hawaii. He does take his teams on some great trips. When I was there I got to go with them to Kentucky. Nothing like seeing a bunch of California girls in the Midwest. It was great. Spagle was just happy because my mom found him a place to get a hot brown sandwich and a bourbon. When in Kentucky... Anyway it was great to see all of them. Then Debby talked us into going over to the soccer games which wasn't on my schedule. The field is amazing now. They have redone it and it is used for the women's pro games. Nancy and I left for a bit to go get dinner. We headed straight to Val's for burgers, fries and milkshakes. The best comfort food I ever found when I lived out there. Then we stopped back by campus for a bit to see how the guy's were doing in their game.

Debby & Me at soccer.

Saturday morning was a nice slow start. Eventually though I left to drive over to Alameda to meet up with Mansi and Amanda who also survived grad school with me. We went to this cute little place by the water. We had the best view of the San Francisco skyline and the Bay Bridge. It was windy but beautiful. And since I had missed Amanda's wedding I was happy to catch up with them. Mansi swears they are either coming to visit in January for Sundance or June when it warms up. I have sent along the Sundance information so we'll see what happens.

Mansi, Me & Amanda

When I got back to Nancy and Kim's we got ready to head to Santa Clara for Brandi's game. I was so excited. All of my favorite players were going to be there. Brandi had invited Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Joy Fawcett, Tisha Venturini, Cindy Parlow, Tiffeny Milbrett, Marcelo Balboa, Tab Ramos, Eric Wynalda and so many more. There were also actors and athletes from other sports. The game was being held at Buckshaw Stadium at Santa Clara University. I used to love going down there for games when I lived in the Bay Area. It was a beautiful day for a game. We got there early so we watched the clinic they were putting on for the kids ahead of the game. Kim and Nancy bought me a t-shirt and the program as early birthday presents. We had also brought a 12 year old friend of theirs named Tiffany. At one point the two of us wandered down to see what else there might be to do and get food. Unfortunately the line for food was so long we bailed on that idea. The line never did get short. I think a lot of people missed a lot of the game standing in that line.

Some of the players.

Julie Foudy & Mia Hamm - team captains

Eventually the game was under way. It was red team v blue team. In the first half Brandi played on the red team but at halftime she switched to the blue team. Considering that some of the players were not soccer players and others had been retired for 6 years it was a great game. Everyone was very competitive and having a good time. I really did watch the game but I also took about 300 photos. I never thought I'd have the chance to see so many of my soccer heroes playing in one game, I had to get proof. It really was a dream come true. There was a group of boys from a local soccer team sitting in front of us. The ones not standing in the concession line kept asking who people were. Since I had the program and years of soccer watching I filled them in the best I could. It is sad that today's kids do not know about Mia and the rest of that group. Although the little girls knew about her. They were still wearing her jersey. The boys were mostly excited because they had heard that a former Boston Red Sox player and an NFL football player were there. I knew they were referring to Nomar Garciaparra for the baseball player but it took awhile to figure out the football player. It was a former 49ers player named Brent Jones.

The whole list of players for the game:
Brandi Chastain, Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy, Tisha Venturini, Joy Fawcett, Aly Wagner, Eric Wynalda, Leslie Osborne, Eric Lagopoulos, Marcelo Balboa, Tab Ramos, Brent Jones, Kelly Lindsey, Ro Hernandez, Tiffeny Milbrett, Nomar Garciaparra, Cindy Parlow, Giovanni Savarese, Chris Armas, Judy Reyes, David Zayas, Sissi, Danielle Slaton, Julie Inkster (she played in her hat), Yang Zhou, Meagan McCray, Jordan Angeli, Fernando Clavijo, Chris Dengerfield, Bobby Sarnevesht, Kristi Leskinen, Joe Cannon, Val Henderson, Tony DiCicco, Chioma Igwe, Chad Chastain, Lorrie Fair, Colleen Hacker, Linda Leipper, Shawn Medved, Cameron Smith, Kerry Smith


Late in the second half Brandi finally scored a goal in her testimonial game.

Brandi's goal.

Celebrating the goal with Mia.

After the score was tied 2-2 they called the game and went to PK's. You almost expected Brandi to take hers and then whip off her jersey like in 1999. She did take the last PK but after scoring she ran over and hugged the goalie. And the game ended up a tie. Not a bad way to go with so many amazing players.

Post game included the retirement of Brandi's high school jersey, her college jersey and then the Mayor of Santa Clara declared it Brandi Chastain Day. The best though was when they let Mia and Julie have the microphone. They had some great things to say about their friend and former teammate. I really miss watching these amazing players. They were a true class act and what all athletes should be like. Finally Brandi had the microphone and thanked everyone. She was a bit emotional but you certainly can't blame her. I was emotional listening and realizing that now all my soccer heroes are retired. It was a beautiful night.

Brandi thanking her fans.

Tisha, Julie, Mia after the game.

How do you follow up an awesome experience like Brandi's testimonial game? You spend Sunday in Monterey with two great friends. Nancy and I drove down to meet Joyce and got there around lunchtime. After checking out Joyce's adorable house we walked down to the wharf for a lunch of sushi. I had been craving sushi for awhile so it was great to finally get some. After lunch we walked back to Joyce's to get the car so we could go cheese tasting and wine tasting. When I still lived in Cali a group of us had gone down to meet Joyce for a day of wine tasting but she introduced us to the Cheese Shop in Carmel that day too. My request was sushi, Nancy's request was cheese. So off we went to The Cheese Shop where we easily spent an hour or more tasting cheese from all over the world. The owner was working with us and started calling me Utah after I told him I couldn't join the wine & cheese of the month club since I live in Utah. He had us try a cheese called "Barely Buzzed" that is dusted in espresso from Utah. I laughed because I'm pretty sure caffeine is not allowed by the Mormon religion, or so I had been told. We had a great time and we all walked out with plenty of cheese and I bought a bottle of wine to try. The next stop was a wine tasting room on Cannery Row. Joyce was a member so we went in and tried some of their delicious wines. I had to purchase a bottle there as well. After that we walked around and tried some of the shops. The sock place pulled us all in and no one walked out empty handed. I was pretty excited to find Thanksgiving socks. Our last stop was the Rocky Mountain Chocolate shop where Joyce treated us all to candy apples and other goodies. Yum! We made sure we had a group photo before taking Joyce home and driving back to Hayward.

Joyce, Me, Nancy

Nancy and I had one more stop that evening. We were invited to dinner at Debby & David's and you never say no! They are the best cooks. And it is always fun to spend time with them at their house. We had a lovely dinner and I got a chance to see the remodeled kitchen. I do miss their amazing dinners now that I'm in Utah.

Monday morning I went in to work with Nancy. Then I borrowed her car to go pick up sourdough bread at Trader Joe's and chocolate from the Ghirardelli Factory Store. If you are in the East Bay Area I recommend the factory store. Great prices and wonderful chocolate. I also had to stop and pick up lottery tickets while I was in a state with a lottery. Hard to win enough to travel the world when you live in a state with no lottery. I picked Nancy up and said good bye to Debby. Then on the way to the airport we stopped at See's Candy to pick up a box of chocolate for my Great Uncle and Aunt. The last time I was out there I bought a box but it never got to them. They received the padded envelope but not the candy. (This time I sent it Fedex.)

And then it was time to fly home. All in all a great trip to California. Hopefully someone from that huge state will come visit before the next time I travel that direction.

Weekend in Jackson Hole

So I'm a bit behind since Courtney and I were in Jackson Hole back in September. We decided that since I had gotten a special we would go up for a weekend after Labor Day. We drove up Friday evening so that we would be there in time to go rafting on Saturday. Before this summer I had never been rafting, now I've been twice. I love it!

When we walked into the Dave Hansen Rafting shop on Saturday morning I was wearing a Notre Dame shirt and my Towson hat. The guy at the desk asked me if I went to Notre Dame because they had a guide that played lacrosse there. When we got to the drop in point I met the guide, Ryan. Turns out that not only did he go to Notre Dame but he grew up in Towson. Very small world. Courtney and I ended up in Ryan's raft and had a fabulous trip down the Snake. If you are up that way I recommend taking a rafting or float trip with Dave Hansen.

Courtney & I after our rafting trip on the Snake River.

We got back into Jackson Hole in the later afternoon and decided to walk around town while we waited for Chris, Amber and Trinity to reach us. They were on their way back from Montana and taking the scenic route. I was excited that I would be able to get my Trinity fix for the month of September. I was getting text messages with updates on their progress. I guess they did not see much wildlife in Yellowstone but fortunately saw some buffalo and moose as they were leaving Teton National Park. They met up with us by one of the Antler Arches in Jackson. We walked around town and eventually stopped for dinner. That is when I got some quality Trinity time. She sat in my lap for most of dinner giving me those big eyes every time I ate a bite and didn't share. Trinity may be up to eating solids but only when they are really mashed up. Not quite time to share my buffalo burger with her.

Trinity in Jackson Hole.

Sunday I introduced Courtney to Yellowstone and Teton National Parks. We were going to drive straight up to Yellowstone to start but took a detour to see the barn with the Tetons behind. I'm glad we did it in the morning since the light wouldn't have been as good later. After that little detour we headed up past Old Faithful to some of the hot pots and geysers. Then we worked our way back down past Old Faithful, Lake Yellowstone and the rest of the park. She will have to go back since there is so much more of the park for her to see. I love going to Yellowstone whenever I can. I usually make it up there at least once or twice a year, except last year. The only wildlife we saw in Yellowstone was one buffalo and an osprey. It is getting harder to find them on my last couple of visits. But we did see lots of Buffalo, one elk, some antelope and the backside of a Moose in the Tetons. So it is possible to see some wildlife while you are up there.

Beautiful view!


Our wildlife encounter.

Beauty in Yellowstone

Before we finished our trip we also took the aerial tram ride up at the Jackson Ski resort. It was beautiful up there even if the day wasn't bright and sunny. There were a bunch of people para sailing which was cool to see. Don't think I'll try it but fun to watch. Overall it was a fabulous weekend. I highly recommend a weekend in Jackson Hole.