Give a hoot, don't pollute!

I picked up a new (used) Toyota truck over the weekend. It was officially initiated today as the community's garbage can and I remembered one of the drawbacks to having a pickup truck. Someone threw two, empty mini bottles of Smirnoff's in the truck bed. This will also be my alibi if I get pulled over and forget to take them out and trash them. (It's documented.)

I met another Deron this evening. I was downtown where we serve a meal on Tuesday nights. I saw a man had fallen out of his wheelchair and another guy helping him. I pulled over to see if any help was needed. We made introductions. The fella who fell out of his chair was Eric and his helper, Deron. I said how do you spell that, I spell mine DERON. He said DERON. I thought he was just repeating what I had said so I asked again and he spelled it the same way. How about that!

FORD - Found On Road Dead

The 1999 Ford Explorer, affectionately known as my Ford Exploder, became deathly ill last night and had to be transported by tow truck to the Unocal 76 station on West Pt. Loma Blvd. in San Diego, CA where she was placed on life support overnight. She was pronounced dead by my mechanic at 12:16 p.m. today. She succumbed to a long list of ailments, not the least of which was a broken transmission, ironically replaced 3 years ago on March 17th. The 3 year warranty expired yesterday but the 36,000 miles have long since been exceeded. I adopted her in 2001 at 60,000 miles and in the end she amassed an impressive (for a Ford) 181,600 miles.

She was a faithful truck taking me to and fro on any adventure I thought up. Someone threatened to cut her down in her prime by bowling a mounted tire onto the freeway. Left with no choice, she protected me by driving over it, sustaining a great deal of damage to her undercarriage but remaining upright. The insurance company helped to heal her and get her back on the road again.

She is survived by a couple operable bicycles and a bus pass. A service will not be held, but feel free to share any pictures or favorite memories you have of her. In lieu of sending flowers, I ask that you use the money to get your transmission fluid changed. Your car will thank you for it.

Yesterday Shorty brought his computer to me to be healed. This has become a part of the pastoral duties..... someway..... somehow?? It wouldn't come on, no flashing lights, no beeps, nothing. I yanked the power supply and took it to Fry's. I had one go out on an HP before. I was sitting 4' from it at the time and heard an explosion similar to that produced by a lady finger firecracker ... Pow! , and then the smoke and awful smell of burning electronics. We weren't 100% sure on this one so I had it tested. The results: "She's dead." "Dead?" "Dead."

I feel like I'm in need of a personal power supply replacement this morning. I wish it were that easy; just slap in a new power supply. For now a Starbuck's Venti Carmel Frappuccino will have to do.

Peoria Sports Complex - Padres vs. Dodgers

So yesterday we saw my Cubbies go down 9-1. I say my Cubbies only b/c I lived in the Chicago area about 8 years of my life & have been a fan part of that time. As they say, "Once a Cubs fan, always a Cubs fan." I was remembering that I used to have a Cubs sticker on my bedroom window next to the one with the firefighter on it telling them there's a kid in that room. I guess I was trying to stack the odds of being rescued in my favor, telling the firefighters that not only was there a kid in my room but that I was a Cubs fan!


Today we arrived early at the PSC, a Complex shared by the Padres and Mariners. It's a great facility. The practice fields are very accessible to the fans. We spent a lot of time milling around the fields, batting and pitching cages getting autographs. It's an interesting concept, the whole idea of autographs. There are some in it to make money and some purists who just enjoy the encounter you can have with a player. Not much else will get you that close with a player and allow you to talk with them. I have a couple friends who won a contest and had one of them over to their house 2 seasons ago. They're on a first name basis. He'll sign anything they throw at him when they see each other. He's nice to everyone, but he'll make a special effort to say hi to them and sign whatever they pass on. I was on vacation when he came over that time to their house but I've mentioned it to him and ride on their coattails. He was there. (I dropped your names and said hi for you, but he would have been glad to sign for us anyway.)


We walked over to one field where they were taking batting practice and giving outfielders some practice with pop-ups. The Boys with Their Toys were goofing around. The GM - Kevin Towers, the Skipper - Bud Black and several of the coaches were standing around the pitching machine. This was probably a special, larger machine for the pop-ups. They were seeing how far it would throw and if it could make a home run over the fence. Then they aimed it straight up. One by one, they popped up four or five, really high, that fell behind the fence into the area where we were standing. Each time everyone yelled, "HEADS UP! HEADS UP!". I was trying to get my glove out of my backpack and couldn't in time plus the sun was right there where it was blinding us from seeing the trajectory of the ball as it fell. The fourth one landed about 1 foot to the left of Jordan - could have killed him. He said it hit him on the elbow after it bounced. Phew!! That was enough for them and they quit when they saw that.

The gates to the stadium were beginning to open so we migrated that way. There were more player encounters, watching more b.p. and warm-ups. Tommy Lasorda was there in full baseball regalia.

Unfortunately, L.A. dodged the Padres and beat us 5-4.

Hohokam Ball Park - Chicago Cubs vs. Arizona Diamondbacks

Ahhh! The pop of the glove, the crack of the bat, the smell of hot dogs & eating sunflower seeds. Baseball's back!

Today we went to Hohokam Ball Park to see the Chicago Cubs take on the Arizona Diamondbacks. We celebrated with Jordan. He was picked before the game to be the Culver Fan of the Day. They took his picture and put it up on the scoreboard just before the start of the game. He was given a Cubs cap and T-shirt. I grew up with Culver's in Wisconsin. I'm glad to see they've branched out so much. It brings back memories of their frozen custard and fried cheese curds. MMMmmmmm!!



El alerted me that Rollie Fingers was signing autographs - raising money for juvenile diabetes. Then I remembered that I had a Brewers cap on so I sought him out and had him sign it. I also bought a ball that he had signed. As a kid, I watched him play 1 mile from my house.

This was a fun park to see a game in. I had to sample the local fare. Let me introduce you to the Mesa Super Nacho Dog. There's a hot dog in there somewhere. It's got chili, cheese, fritos and jalapenos on it. Extra napkins and a fork are a must when eating this thing. I ended up with chili/cheese all over the place; my shirt, sunglasses, cap (when I removed it for the Star Spangled Banner) and on the camera (a loaner, Ooops!)



We met up with some of the players after the game for autographs. On the way driving back to the room we saw this cool light in the middle of the sky. It reminded me of a rainbow but it didn't have all the colors represented and it was just a small ray. We couldn't think of what it's called. Anyone?

On Vacation!

We rolled out today and headed for AZ - on vacation! I can probably count on my hands and feet the amount of times I've not attended church on a Sunday in my life. One big marker for me though of a good vacation is that I easily forget what day it is. Already this doesn't seem like a Sunday. The sun is brighter and the mood lighter. Already, it is a true Sabbath for someone used to working on Sunday.

We're off! I have the privilege of going with Team Kess to Arizona for baseball spring training, relaxation and seeing the sights.

The trip to Phoenix was fun. Stopping in Yuma for lunch, we continued on and met El and Nancy Kessler at our destination - the Marriott Canyon Villas. It's going to be hard not to relax here. A dip in the pool and hot tub were the order for the evening.