On The Fly

“We’ve planned a 50 mile wilderness hike over six days in the Sierra’s every year for the past 30 years,” said the lean stranger with a warm smiling expression and a fully loaded backpack over his shoulders. "You guys inspire me to keep climbing! May I ask, how old you are?” “Sure, I’m 78. . . ” Unbelievable , I thought to myself, pausing to reflect, at how physically demanding the past few days of climbing switchbacks, scaling boulders, squatting lakeside to filter water, and simply doing the daily chores it takes to wilderness backpack in the Eastern Sierra’s. “How in the world do they carry enough food for six days, their packs look smaller than ours? We must be doing something wrong.” I commented to my companions. My muscles were strong, breathing easy, but for some reason I had been physically exhausted this trip. I suspect it all started with a beer! It was day three of our 2016 Sierra adventure. Finally accumulated to the elevation of over 11,000 ...

With a mighty swing, crack of the bat, and roar of the crowd Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins hammers home run after home run before a sold out crowd at Petco Park, in San Diego California during the 2016 MLB Home Run Derby . Sounds of freedom! Stick with me you’ll see what I mean - read on. Monday, July 11, 2016 Lori and I attended this years MLB Home Run Derby thanks to a generous gift from a colleague at Home Depot who for the first time became a season ticket holder for the Padres after retiring from his over 20 years of service. “I’m taking my daughter to the All Star Game this year for the first time,” he said excitedly. “We’re not interested in the Derby and would love to share the tickets with you. I know you’re a big baseball fan. Would you be able to go?” “Absolutely! We would love to go, thanks so very much . . . ” Petco Park, decked out in all it’s glory is this year’s host of the 2016 All Star Game and it’s festivities. Downtown San Diego (Gaslamp ...

“ Mark Cavendish claimed stage one of the 103rd Tour de France at Utah Beach as he out sprinted Marcel Kittel and Peter Sagan to take the first yellow jersey of his career.” Ah, Summer! Bicycling magic is renewed for millions when the voices of Phil Liggett, Paul Sherwen, and Bob Roll, grace the television airwaves broadcasting  Le Tour de France  (Le Tour). If you have the audacity to believe you’re an accomplished bicyclist, tune into NBC SN Sports broadcast of Le Tour in July (July 2 - July 24, 2016). Quickly humility sets in. This year marks the 103 rd  Anniversary - 21 stages, a total distance of 3,535 kilometers, and only two,  yes two , rest days - of this classic race that tours the French countryside with the finale in Paris on the Champs-Elysées. Bicycling magazine lists a few fun facts about Le Tour; racers will consume 160,000 calories during the three-week tour. 200 bottles of water or drink mix (depends on the temperature) per race....

"Every day, we put in place plans and ideas that will determine the shape and substance of our tomorrows." Consider for a moment the power of that simple statement. It was 60 years ago when Earl Nightingale wrote and produced what has become known as The Strangest Secret.  An audio recording that sold over a million copies, making it the first spoken-word recording to achieve Gold Record status. The premise of that powerful message was simply this, “We become what we think about.” A truth that had been handed down through generations crafted in many different languages. The bible states it this way, “As you sow, so also shall you reap.” Or this one, “Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” - Robert Louis Stevenson Face the facts; we all want excellent results from life, in our home, our work, and in all our interactions with other people. Be it financial, intangible, or both. Earl said it best, “The most important single...

We were 12 years old at the time in sixth grade, pranksters.  My good friends Perry Marlette, Nathan Robertson, and I were the adolescent boys who “terrorized" the town of Cuba, Illinois with pranks that drove our local cop batty. After our adventures we would retreat back to Perry’s house and his mother would refuel us with Hostess Twinkies and 7up. I guess you had to grow up in the 1960s to realize that snacks weren’t always healthy fresh fruits, and whole grain products. Of course, we devoured crackers and cheese, nuts, and a variety of munchies but what sticks in my mind was the sugar rush from Twinkies and 7up. Maybe it’s because it was not something my mother would buy for our family. It was a luxury! I can hear you asking, “What in the world reminded you of this?”  Our high school class of 1974 has a Facebook page with 46 members. It’s a closed group that friends only seem to post when someone from our graduating class dies. In our small town we came to k...

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” Catchers are squatting, and pitchers reporting - you be of good cheer.   “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” Hah, you thought it was Andy Williams singing about Christmas.    Nope, for millions of baseball fans Spring Training rings in The National Pastime. A time of renewed hope and fresh starts. The season (for me) officially kicks off Monday, April 4, 2016, 7:05 pm (PST) with the Los Angeles Dodgers battling the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. With 162 games to play, 30 teams step confidently into opening day with renewed hope. Is this year "Next Year" for the Cubs? Ok, I’m a die hard Cubs fan at heart. Did anyone catch Bill Murray playing the 2016 Pebble Beach ProAm wearing Cubs golf slacks? John Daly would have been proud. Yes, every baseball fan has their special team. In California alone we have five teams to choose from: The Los Angeles Dodgers, Angels of Anaheim, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, an...

Crash! The wind howled: the house shook, a window shattered, hail pounded the windows as tree branches splintered and flew just inches outside our bedroom's sliding glass door. It was 1:30 a.m. February 1, 2016. Jolted back to our earthly reality we leapt out of bed. "Oh my God, the giant tree in the back yard has fallen,” Lori shrieked. When nature comes knocking instantly hundreds of wild uncontrollable thoughts flash through your mind. Do we need to evacuate? What happened? Was there electrical damage? Which tree is it? Are the cats ok? Did it destroy our new deck? Is the roof intact? What about the neighbor’s trees . . .  In the pitch darkness little did we know that both 40-50 foot Pine trees in our yard had been completely uprooted by the violent storm from the Winter El Nino in Southern California. We flipped on the light and made our way down the stairs. The cats were nowhere to be found. Glass covered the living room carpet and a cold wind was ...

You CAN teach an ole' dog new tricks. It amazes me that I still hear the platitude, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Really? People continue to use it as excuse for not being able to successfully learn or even attempt a new skill to their satisfaction or expectation. Agreed, learning a new skill is challenging. Let’s be honest, it’s downright hard. Well, I’m here to say that learning a new skill is not a bag of tricks and humans are not dogs. It’s simply a discipline that’s driven by a “want to” passion. It’s been over one year now and I’m having more fun than ever exploring the world of music with my Fender guitar . . . You see, in my experience, to remain young at heart, curious, and active, life is about learning and teaching new skills. The emotional and physical rewards are simply undeniable.  And if I might add practically unexplainable, but let’s try. Almost daily I meet customers at Home Depot who say to me, “No one teaches you how to be retir...