On The Fly

“Goooood morning Vietnam!” As the clock on the wall strikes 6:00 a.m. we’re ready to leap into another day. This is not a radio program being transmitted from the rice patties of Central Vietnam but (my hope) a humorous travel log from our Cenergy Power company retreat in November of 2019. How do you possibly begin with so many unique and vivid experiences rolled into a ten-day trip in Asia? Well, it’s best I think, if we start with the rules we adopted early in this trip for safety, comfort, and a wide variety of extraordinary travel experiences. The rules were simple: Rule #1 - Always follow Doan Hyphuoc Vo ( Dr. Vo ) Rule #2 - If you think you are  right, read Rule #1 again Why you say, well, sit back and allow me to share the story of our adventures in Vietnam. Dr. Vo is the team lead (and our personal guide) for Cenergy’s Electrical Engineering Operations. He was born in Saigon in the early 1950s. This blog post could be a complete biography of hi...

“J'ai trouvé des trésors” (I’ve found some treasures). These were my first words (via FaceBook Messenger & Google Translate ) to my cousin Marie Claude Papot in La Rochelle, France.  “I have over 60 years of letters, postcards, photos, and notes written in a hand I cannot read, can you help?” “C'est une bonne idée!” Came her response. I’ve dubbed this “Project Translate.” It’s been over a year now since my mother ( Mauricette Ball ) passed away. Frankly, I'm ashamed to say she was the only connection to our French family. During a recent visit home I decided it was time to finally clean Mom’s house. It was obvious after almost a year none of my siblings wanted the responsibility of dealing with Mom’s belongings. Can’t say that I blame them really. All the years my parents lived in that same tiny house in the small Midwestern town of Cuba, IL. she saved everything (tucked neatly away in places you’d never suspect). Turns out I’ve uncovered bundles...

Heartbroken, in tears, at a complete loss for words . . . it can’t be! This was my overwhelming and immediate gut-wrenching reaction when I received the following text message at 10:46 a.m. on October 9, 2019. “Your sister is no longer with us.” “But, she was recovering?!” Just a few days prior, her personal team of doctors; heart, lung, 24/7 on-duty nurse, ECMO   technicians, and an arsenal of other specialists at the University of Chicago Medical Center were optimistic - what happened, why - how is this possible . . . So many thoughts and emotions poured through my entire being.  “She's Tough,” said the doctors. Michele beat the odds and made it through a complication in her condition that required surgery to remove a blood clot and fluid buildup on her heart. I had just returned home from the Chicago hospital. And said to my wife Lori, “She regained consciousness, recognized me, and blew me a kiss.” Really, my beautiful Lil' sister Michele Lu...

Are you a baseball fan? If you are keep reading, if not that’s OK football season has arrived. On August 24, 2019, for this year birthday celebration, we made our yearly sojourn to Dodger Stadium, home of the National League-leading Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a blistering day in LA! (Sounds like one of Chandler’s Philip Marlowe novels.)  Haha - after fighting LA traffic, we arrive at Chavez Ravine. Posted, in BIG letters, at the parking lot gate -  GAME SOLD OUT.  Undaunted, tickets in hand, or should I say iPhone, we’re directed to park our automobile. After slathering on sunscreen, we make our way to the upper deck, thinking, it’s going to be hot up there , ah - “love these seats we’re in the shade,” thank the baseball gods. Tradition dictates, especially at Dodger Stadium, tune in with your transistor radio. “It’s time for Dodger Baseball!” Who could forget the magical voice of Vin Scully all those years? So, we’re cozied into our seats listening to Cha...

Ah, Summer! Bicycling magic is renewed for millions when the familiar voices of Phil Liggett, Bob Roll, and Jens Voight grace the television airwaves broadcasting  Le Tour de France    (Le Tour). The 106th edition of the Tour de France celebrates 100 years of the maillot jaune (yellow jersey), and this year's race honors Eddy Merckx with its Grand Departure from Brussels. Le Tour 2019 kicked off on Saturday, July 6, with three weeks of racing, including five mountain top finishes and a total of 3,460 kilometers. That’s the distance from our house in Vista, CA. to Elkhart, Indiana -  2,150 miles! When you have the audacity to believe you’re an accomplished bicyclist, tune into NBC SN Sports broadcast of Le Tour in July (July 6 - July 28, 2019). Quickly humility sets in. This year marks the 106th Anniversary - 21 stages and only two,  yes two , rest days - of this classic race that tours the French countryside with the finale in Paris on the Cham...

With a Midwest twang severely off-key, I’m out the front door, earbuds plugged in, arms pumping, on my routine early morning walk. Of course, I must look ridiculous and sound even worse, echoing the chorus of - Get Rhythm  by Johnny Cash.  Thankfully, there’s no one else on the streets. Summer is upon us; officially, the summer solstice occurred in the Northern Hemisphere today at 11:54 a.m. EST. According to Ker Than in an article for National Geographic, “The solstice is the result of Earth's north-south axis being tilted 23.4 degrees relative to the ecliptic. This tilt causes different amounts of sunlight to reach different regions of the planet during Earth's year-long orbit around the sun." Translation, daylight lasts until after 8:00 p.m. in Southern California. Again, I’ve been blessed with another opportunity to re-invent myself this year. On July 1st, 2019, I accepted a position at Cenergy Power as an Energy Analyst.  Going from pounding the concrete at Ho...

Podcast - Music Magic . . .  It was the Danish author Hans Christian Anderson that said, “Where Words Fail Music Speaks.” This reminded me that music is all around us and easily accessible in this digital age we’ve stumbled into. At 63 I’m finding new ways to experience the joy of guitar. It's Magic . . .   Well, not really, its persistent effort and practiced fingers dancing daily across the fretboard. Lately, I’ve been listening to some new young artists on YouTube that is simply terrific. Josh Turner Guitar and Reina Del Cid. These artists play a wide variety of covers from Country, Rock, Folk, Pop, and Bluegrass. Not to mention they both write and produce their own original music. While listening I’ll try to play along, in-time with the video. I’ve “graduated” from just listening to YouTube guitar lessons to strumming the harmony. Frankly, I’m amazed at how much strumming the Ukulele has helped me with the guitar. It’s a lot of fun to “get in...

Los Angeles, CA. - Beth Eaton, 83, of  El Camino Village passed away at 9:20 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, 2019, at Kaiser Permanate Medicial Center in Harbor City.  Beth was born July 9, 1935 in San Bernardino, California. She was adopted at birth by Ernest and Marie Carver of Pomona, California. Raised in the farming tradition on the Carvers’ Hatchrite Turkey Ranch , Beth graduated from Pomona High School in June 1953. She attended Mount San Jacinto College. She studied business and later worked at Security Pacific Bank in Claremont, CA. Beth met and married Gerald Davies from Marlette, Michigan. They married in Pomona and lived in Claremont, where their daughter Lori Jo was born in 1959. The family moved to Santa Barbara and in 1962 had a son, Kenneth Andrew. Shortly after they moved to Michigan to start a business and raise the children closer to the Davies family. In 1978 the family moved back to California so Beth could be near her widowed father, settling in he...

  Have you ever owned a “lemon?” An automobile that’s just a bottomless pit of money to keep it on the road. The car I’m talking about is best remembered for it’s propensity to combust in rear end collusions. Yes, you guessed it - the Ford Pinto. We named ours The Mean Green Booger Machine .  Back in the late 1970s my best friend, Nathan, and I decided we would embark on a road trip from Cuba, Illinois to California, to photograph the country. He had a clever idea, “I’m going to take the back seats out of the car and fabricate plywood beds.When the front seats are folded forward we will be able to sleep in the car very comfortably with a backpackers pad and our sleeping bags.” Brilliant! We would save hundreds, well maybe a few bucks, on motel rooms to California and back.  So the renovation began. Seats removed, plywood measured, cut, and 2x2 wood blocks screwed into place to keep the boards from sliding around. Nathan's father owned a Skelly Gas Sta...