8 Game Weekend

Both G and Drew had soccer tournaments this weekend in cities about 45 minutes from us in opposite directions!  So Jim and I split up and I watched Grace on Saturday while he watched Drew.  Then we flip flopped for Sunday. 

Out of 8 games we had 7 wins.  Grace's team lost their game first thing on Sunday morning which put them in the consolation game - which the won 5 to 0.  It was too bad because they were the best team at the tourney but they just didn't play well on Sunday morning.

Drew's team won the tournament.  They played really well the whole weekend.  But a weird thing happened:  After the championship game, they always have an awards ceremony.  It happens right away and only takes a few minutes.  Typically, the team that won and the team that lost the Championship go and accept their medals.  Well - when they started the ceremony, the losing team's coach came up and said that he let his players go home!  So they were not there for the ceremony.  We have never seen something like that.  It seemed so disrespectful and a display of poor sportsmanship.  We were really surprised.

Week 3 Fantasy Football

Biggest Loser and Biggest Winner

Quiet Mind

This is a conversation I had in my head the other nite when I couldn't sleep at about 2 am.

"Damn, I can't sleep.

I just need to quiet my mind.

I think I have gotten better at quieting my mind. 

I wonder if I have gotten better because I am more self aware. 

I wonder if being able to quiet your mind just comes with age....maybe when you are older you are better at it....maybe when you are older, biologically you mind just quiets easier.....maybe as you get older you have less things to worry about so your mind quiets better....maybe all my yoga is finally paying off.  

Shoot....I am not quieting my mind at all.....I am conducting an analysis about mind quieting!  I guess I am not any better at it than I used to me!

Kate Spade

I hit the jackpot at an online Kate Spade sale! 

Bees!

Our gardener was at our house this morning and came to the door to inform me that we have about 500 swarming bees in the front yard.  He was trimming a bush and the bees started swarming.  I went out to look and there was one branch with 100's of bees on it.

He called a friend who does beekeeping for 4H and they are going to come out and get them.

In the meantime....stay away!

Pretzels

I made home made pretzels this weekend and they were AMAZING!  Made a couple different dips but they were the best with brie and pepper jelly.  YUM!

Kongs

I feel really bad for the dogs that I have to go to the office everyday now.  So I get up at the crack of dawn every day and run them.  And then.....I fill their kongs with turkey jerkey and leave them on the counter for Drew to give them when he leaves for school. 

They are totally into the routine and wait for me to find their kongs in the morning and then stare at them on the counter!

Purple Bus

Yikes!

Giant purple bus was 12 minutes late today and then traffic was BAD!  Got to work totally late but the good thing is there was nothing I could do about it so I just kept working!

Spot

I never thought that Daisy would have stay spotted so long or be so interesting to others who see her.

I have had peolple come out of their houses to look at her and people stop their cars to ask what kind of dog she is!

Here are the most recent comments:

• Your dog looks like she has the measles.
• Is that a Labrador - Dalmation mix?
• That is a beautiful dog.
• She looks like a hyena.
• I thought she was wearing a coat.
• You did that (pointing to me)?  You are an artist!
• WHY did you do that?

Flowers

These flowers are right outside our cafeteria at work.  I love the purple and yellow together.  I think I might do these color combo next year in my front yard.

Mystery Equipment

Jim just sent me this pic and said "We got it going.  It's running good.  Ready to pull pots."

My response:  "Great....whatever it is!"

To me, it looks like a beer tap on steroids.

Biggest Winner and Loser - Week 2

Here are the biggest winner and loser from week 2 of fantasy football.  Coach needed to process improve and bring a wine glass because she did not want to drink her mimosa out of a boot glass!

Baby Bird

Last nite during TNDC, the girls found this baby bird by the front step.  It has a broken or injured wing.  It is one of the hundreds of finches that hang out in the front yard eating the seed I leave out and bathing in the fountain.

Grace is calling the rescue place to see if they will take it.  It is really sweet, it just sits on your finger.

More deliveries

Block

Received a few more deliveries:

• The block for pulling up the crab pots
• A giant light for fishing at nite
• Some weights which I don't have pics of

I came home from a walk the other nite and the entire street was lit up because they were testing out the light!  Bet the neighbors were pleased.  We really need to live in the country where we won't bother other people with our crab equipment, dirt bikes and dogs!

Light

Golden Girl Slogan

The voting has closed and we have a winner!

The slogan for the Golden Girl is......

Captain Dan Will Give You Crabs Tonite

Coming in at a close second was "Golden Girl - Crusty, Busty and Oh So Trusty".

Write in nominations were:

• Golden Girl Crabs Don't Itch - They Pinch!
• I Don't Often Get the Itch - But When I Do, I See Big Dan's Golden Girl For Crabs
• Got Crab's?

Next up - we need a logo!

Adi

Thought this was a good pic of Drew's soccer team.  A lot of these boys have been playing soccer together for most of their lives.  It is a really nice group of kids.

Lunch Date - Part 2

I forgot to mention that one of the lunch options today was a chip bar!

• Homemade potato chips with onion yogurt dip
• Pita chips with hummus
• Tortilla chips with guacamole

Plus there were other dips that I did not try.  Best lunch ever!

Lunch Date

Had special dates for lunch today at work:  Tina, Mari and Auntie Deb!  What a special treat for me! 

Summer of Service

At work, we are doing a "Summer of Service" campaign where every employee is encouraged to donate to their community.  My team cannot agree on what they want to do, so after many suggestions, I told them that my service was going to give blood. 

So last Friday, myself and my admin, Kari, went over to the blood bank and spent an hour giving blood.  Although it is not what you traditionally consider a community service activity, I thought it was appropriate - especially since the blood bank was critically low and was calling me EVERY day trying to get me to come in!

Morning drama

If you lay in bed in the morning, you miss so much!

This morning while out running the dogs (at 6 am), I was moving along when I realized that Daisy was behind me - she was off leash.  I turned and looked back and saw her head in the bushes.  Just as I looked, I coyote came shooting out of the bush --- running right by Daisy into the hills!

Yikes - that was freaky!  Good thing Ahi was on leash.

Adventures on the Purple Bus

This morning on the giant purple bus, I was getting all settled in my seat and ready to start working when my favorite lip balm from Hawaii went flying out of my purse and rolling down the center aisle of the bus (it is slanted so it just kept going).  The people in the two rows in front of me stepped into action and used their feet to stop it.  The first guy missed it by a hair but the lady in front of him stopped it with her high heels! 

Then she did a little side ways soccer kick and tapped it back to my.  But I was seat belted in my seat and my arms didn't reach far enough.  So it rolled back to her and she tapped it back again, while I quick undid my seat belt and caught it!

Adventures on the purple bus!

Golden Girl

Tina, Marty, the dogs and I went to see the Golden Girl today.  I have to say that it looks super cool from a distance, but once you get in it.....it is quite stinky!  Drew and Jim assure me that it actually smells good compared to what it used to smell like!  Yikes!

Crab bin

Jim made this crab bin today for the boat.  The way it works is -- they bring up a pot, tip it upside down and hit it on the back of the bin causing the crab to fall out of the pots into the bin.  Then they re-bait the pot and throw it back in.  Meanwhile a sorter sorts the good crab from the throwbacks.  The good crab ride a slide down to the holding bin.

The crab pot in the pic is smaller than the pots they will be using.  He used a cardboard cut out of the actual sized bin to "test" the crab bin.

The BIG Loser and the Butt Kicker

We have new glasses that are to be used during fantasy football season.  The little mug is for the week's biggest loser to drink out of at TNDC.  The boot is for the week's biggest butt kicker to drink out of.  Mr C and Jim were this week's winners.

Comparison

Comparison is the thief of joy.  Theodore Roosevelt

In our family, we have a strict rule - you only compare yourself to yourself.  From a scientific perspective, that is the only real way to measure if you have improved.  It doesn't make sense to compare you to someone else, because you can't control them and you have different skills so it would be an inaccurate measurement.

So when I found this quote by Theodore Roosevelt, I thought it was brilliant.

Buoy Fun

Stacked!

Mix TNDC with 500 buoys and you are bound to have fun!  We had lots of helpers so a lot of work was getting done. 

With all that work came a huge pile of buoys that people kept getting pushed into!  Sort of like an episode of Wipe Out.

And then who could resist putting them under your shirt to see what you might look like if you had a "buoy job".

And the buoys came in huge boxes that Amanda kept hiding in and jumping out at Drew.  Scared him every time!

Amanda's turn to be pushed into the buoy pile

Big Dan and Deputy Doug

Still have about three boxes to go

Kody has perfect form

The support staff

Football Update

G had her second flag football game yesterday and played all but two plays.  She missed those two places because someone's head hit her thigh and gave her a "dead leg".   It took a couple plays to shake it off.  But then she was back in and made some awesome plays including a safety for 2 points and a tipped ball!

They lost the game but gave a good fight.

She spent the evening on the couch icing her thigh and then ended the night with a warm bath to loosen up the muscle!

This morning she woke up and the first thing she said is, "Ohhhh I am sore!"

500 Buoys

This is what 500 buoys look like in boxes

Yesterday we received an order of 500 buoys!  Next step was to tie them and brand them.  Doug Walker made the brand and it worked great!  Jim and Dan tied the buoys and Drew branded each one.  It took a couple hours to get 30 of them done!  I hope the speed picks up with the experience.

The next step is to hook the loop end of each buoy to a hitch on a truck and pull the knots tight.  This is going to be a long process!

Tying them up

Getting the brand hot

Branding each buoy

Finished product

All done

No limitations

I have a dear friend, Missy, who I respect for many reasons:  her positive attitude, her excellent parenting of two amazing daughters and her ability to focus on what is important.  So when I got the message below from her, it was very, very meaningful.

From Missy:

 

 "Just saw the pictures on your blog with Gracie playing football. Jim and Roy must be beaming from ear to ear (of course not to mention you and everyone else). What a truly amazing daughter you and Jim have raised. There are no boundaries or ceilings in her world and that is because she was raised without limitations or bias imposed on her. Her confidence, courage, and vision to do anything she wants is truly a gift. What an inspiration to everyone around her regardless of age and gender."

This message made me cry - and for those of you who know me, that is saying something.  I have worked for the last 14 years to raise Grace just as Missy described, but I have never so precisely verbalized my goal.  I had merely stated my goal as to raise "a strong, kick ass girl".  Missy said it much better and I will be forever grateful for that!  Thanks Missy for taking the time to notice and for saying something.  Love you!

And...cheers to kick ass girl power!

Number 76

Leaving her guy in the dust

Today was Grace's first day playing football.  She played defensive end and tore it up on the field.  I felt sorry for the boys she beat up and left in the dust.

Back pedaling

Chalk talk

Lining up

Making the block!

In the huddle

Aspen Valley and Rim Fire

Jim's Aunt and Uncle own a cabin in Aspen Valley which is in the middle of Yosemite.  And by own, I mean that years ago, a family member homesteaded the area before it was Yosemite!  And the cabin has been passed down thru the generations.  It is super unique because Aspen Valley is the only private homes in all of Yosemite.  Aspen Valley is a beautiful meadow that is very remote and contains about 12 cabins that were also homesteaded and passed down thru families.

The Rim Fire headed right towards Aspen Valley and we were worried about their cabin.  I checked in with them and this is the report I received:


"Then-n-n, unbelievably the fire swept up to Yosemite--and eventually right over Aspen Valley. Our cousin, Kevin, a retired Fire Chief, several other fire chiefs that hold property at Aspen forced a meeting with Cal Fire. They had to let Cal Fire know that Aspen Valley was in Tuoulumne County, not Yosemite NP, and Cal Fire had responsibility. 

Fortunately, they responded and a joint effort included spraying all cabins and decks with fire retardant and starting three "burn outs" (back-fires to us) on East, North and West sides (covers everything as South side is the tip of a triangle). Kevin managed to get into Evergreen Rd, and he walked 9 miles into Aspen one morning after staying at our Pine Mtn. House. He found out that all cabins survived unburned. 

On the way he had to cross 15 downed logs that were burning on the road. The road is still closed as they didn't burn-out along its whole length. I guess they got crews and a bull-dozer in by helicopter! The fire East took off to Long Gulch (in 3 minutes) and East Meadow in 30 minutes. I think they are encouraging the remaining fire to burn to a line between the end of Hetch Hetchy Resorvoir (Smith Peak) through Harden Lake to White Wolf. That is very slow now, according to daily maps."

Soccer Mojo

Grace had her first league game with her new soccer team this past weekend and she totally had her soccer mojo on.  With less than a minute in the game, the score was tied and Grace got a break away.  She sprinted down the middle of the field with her ultra long limbs, totally keeping control of the ball the whole way, constantly checking the location of the goalie and the player on her back and took a very controlled shot into the corner of the goal....scoring the winning goal!

It was like something out of a movie!

So fun to watch and she was fired up. 

Crab Slogan Survey

Make sure you take the crab slogan survey.  Survey will be open til the weekend....or until I otherwise decide!
 
Crab Slogan Survey

Cherry Lake - Rim Fire Video

Here is a quick preview of what Cherry might look like now.

Cherry Lake Video

I was hesitant to watch it and after I finally worked up the courage, I am left with indifferent feelings: 

Is it devastated?  I am not sure. 
Are there areas that were saved?  I am not sure.
Is there still beauty left?  I am not sure.
Is it still magical....it HAS to be!

Crabbing Slogan Contest

Announcing a contest to develop a slogan for the new boat and crabbing business! 

There are no prizes and by entering, you give up all rights to the slogan and any future use of it.  But if you live in the area or come by for a visit during crab season, you will likely be paid in fresh crab.

Send me your suggestions and if I get enough worthy slogans I will open it up for a vote on my blog.  So put on your creative hats!

Here are some facts to help you:

• The boat is called the Golden Girl
• Captain Dan will pilot the boat
• Jim and Denny will be deck hands...or Chief Crabbing Officers (CCO)
• Boat will fish out of Half Moon Bay
• Crab will by its main product

So far the main contender is:

The Golden Girl - Crusty, Busty and Oh So Trusty

First Delivery

When I got home from work last nite, there was a lot of commotion because the guys were waiting for the first delivery of crabbing equipment.  This was a delivery of 65 spools of rope, which equals about 3200 pounds!

The delivery guy apparently showed up earlier in the day when no one was home (he failed to call first) and our very kind neighbor, Butch, asked if he could sign for the delivery!  As nice as that was, it was not possible because he couldn't just leave the rope on the street until we got home.

We have 3 more big deliveries, so stay tuned!

It is all VERY exciting.

Time to move to the backyard

Positive Words

I have been thinking a lot lately about positive speaking. You know....the old adage, "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all"?

It is not always easy to do.

• You might see someone dressed really bad and want to say....what a train wreck.

 

• You might see someone driving like a jerk and want to say...what a dumb ass.

 

• You might hear of someone going on vacation to a location you don't like and want to say....I hate Mexico (insert name of location you are not fond of here).

What I find is that when you say negative words like "train wreck", "dumb ass", "hate", they have an adverse effect on you and the people around you.  And I would argue that words like that have an adverse effect on the world.

I am trying to make it a point to use more positive speech because I feel that it has a positive impact on me and the people around me.   It goes along with my belief of putting positive out in the world as much as possible.  Negative brings us all down.

This must be an idea that humans have struggled with for eons because these are some old proverbs that address this idea:

"A man of knowledge uses words with restraint." 

"The words of the reckless pierce like swords"

Rim Fire Current Facts

Here are the latest facts released by Incident Command:
Rim Fire: Day 17
Acreage: 235,841
Square miles: 371
Largest wildfire in the United States to date in 2013
(Second largest to date in 2013: Lime Hills Fire, Alaska 201,809 acres)
No. 1-ranked on national wild land firefighting priority list
Fourth largest California wildfire in historical records dating to 1932
(The four largest California wildfires have all occurred since 2003)
Personnel currently on incident: 4,185
States that have sent firefighters or other personnel: 44 and the District of Columbia
Cal Fire geographical units that have sent personnel: 20 of 21
Inmate personnel from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation: 746
Proportion of inmate personnel working on the fire: 17.1 percent
Completed containment line: 110.7 miles
Completed dozer line: 149.7 miles
Hand line: 9.3 miles
Road Used as Line: 19.9 miles
Total acres burned in California to date in 2013:
493,627
Rim Fire acres as a proportion of burned acres in California:
47.8 percent
Total aviation hours: 1,543
Water dropped: 2.0 million gallons
Fire retardant dropped: 2.3 million gallons
Acreage in Yosemite National Park: 66,155
Proportion of the fire burning in Yosemite National Park: 28 percent
Proportion of Yosemite National Park within the fire perimeter: 8.7 percent
Size of the fire area:
More than five times the size of Washington, D.C.
Hot meals served:
Breakfasts: 45,133 Dinners: 41,558
Pounds of firefighter laundry washed:
14,148.3
Origin of Rim Fire name: The fire started near a scenic overlook in Stanislaus National Forest called "Rim of the World"

Captain Dan and the Golden Girl

After months of drama, Jim and his buddies have closed the deal on a boat, are ordering  all needed equipment....and are officially crab fisherman!   Well, the season doesn't open til November but they are starting all the work now.

This is the new boat, the Golden Girl - AKA their Old Lady!

Swing by our house in the next month and you will see a backyard full of 150 crab pots, rope hanging from trees, spools and spools of rope, big spot lights hanging out of windows and lighting up the whole back yard and other crazy stuff! 

Stay tuned for more on this adventure.

Rim Fire Update

Things are looking really good for the Rim Fire - it is 80% contained and they are releasing fire fighters.  Next step for us is to make a run out to Cherry when it opens up.  We had heard that 120 might be open in a week or so but that was unofficial scuttlebutt at the Country Club.

Wrong Purple Bus Update

I saw the lady who got on the wrong bus yesterday morning get off another bus last nite - so I am confident that she made it to work yesterday.....or she went somewhere else and spent the day there!

Purple Bus

I got on the giant purple bus this morning.  

Got all settled in. 

The driver started pulling away. 

And some woman on the back of the bus got up and ran to the front of the bus saying...."I have got to get off the bus."  I figured maybe she got some kind of emergency phone call.

NOPE!  She was on the wrong bus - she was not an employee! 

How do you accidentally get on a giant purple bus?!?!?!  I was giggling!

Rim Fire Update

We went to check out fire damage yesterday afternoon once the smoke lifted and what a difference that made!  When we looked in the morning, you could only see about the length of a football field or two.  In the afternoon you could see all the devastation for miles!

At nite, we went to the country club where you could actually see flames on the ridges near Pilot's Peak!  That was so cool.  We tried to get pics but you really couldn't see it on a camera - but in person it was one of the top 10 coolest things I have ever seen in nature!

The fire is currently 222, 777 acres, has 5,115 fire personnel and is the fourth largest fire in California history.  And the estimated containment date is Sep 20!

Across the canyon is the road down to the river

Add caption

The little mound of dirt at the bottom of this pic still had smoldering areas with smoke!

We saw a bunch of these - this is where a tree root burned all the way into the ground.

Found!

Just an FYI in case you were wondering....I found Fran!  She emailed me and all is well.  Whew!  I don't like losing track of friends!

Stache's in Nature

How funny is it that our tree face has grown a cob web mustache?