He's Back!

It's been a busy start to the school year, but I've got a few pictures to show off. These should give you a quick summary as to what I've been up to, since I haven't had much time for cardboard as of late.

My junior high softball coaching duties ended yesterday and maybe now I can play a little more attention to the blog with the extra time.

 Above is a picture of me hitting fly balls to my sixth grade team during pregame warm-ups. I take pride in being able to hit a softball into the glove of a less than confident twelve year old. Not easy to do at one hundred and twenty feet away from me!

My wife, father-in-law and I planted a new tree in the front yard. 

 We lost our ash tree last fall to the notorious emerald ash borer.  Gingkos are slow growing, but they are supposedly very hearty. Hopefully this little guy does well!

Our school district had a "school improvement day" recently and I learned how to graph within an on-line graphing calculator.

 It took some work, but I finished a Cubs logo!  The shading of the red and blue was the most challenging. Hat-tip to my co-worker Mike for troubleshooting for me!

I was able to get a little paddle boarding in a couple of weekends ago. 

Laura and I, feeling a little brave, traveled across the lake at Snakeden Hollow on the same board. She sat on the back and I did the paddling. I tried to make it across standing up, but I quickly found I had to kneel. Either that, or wind up wet!

I've resumed my duties taping games for the football coaching staff.

 Last week, I was in a scissor lift about twenty feet in the air at the back of the north end zone. Yikes! Their end zone camera is currently broken, so they have four sophomores running the camera from atop the press box, which is my normal post.  I'm not a big fan of heights and I'm hoping they get the camera fixed soon.

Lastly, the Mariners called up Dan Vogelbach yesterday. I should be pumped about this, but he'll be lucky to accumulate ten at-bats the rest of the way. The Mariners seem committed to Danny Valencia and Yonder Alonso at first base with Nelson Cruz being used as the DH. I guess that leaves me waiting 'til next year. Go figure.

No Cardboard, but Hardware!

On Saturday my baseball team played in the Regional Championship against the #1 seeded team, who had one the last three regional titles and earned a fourth place finish in the state tournament last year. Needless to say, we were the underdogs.

We fell behind early, in part to some shaky defense, but we rallied, wound up turning three double plays and came out on top, 4-2.

It's a great group of guys, and their personalities are all over the map, but they do have a few things in common: working hard, having fun, and love for the game. They are an easy group of guys to coach and I am very proud of them.

Winning the Regional Championship was kind of a big deal, as it was our first since 2009. The head coach, featured in the video below, didn't take over the program until 2011 and this is only my second year with the varsity team. All of the players were still in elementary school eight years ago.  So, yes, some celebrating was in order!

After the big game I headed north to my in-laws, which gave me an opportunity to visit the Jewel-Osco chain of grocery stores.

I came home with twelve boxes of Cubs-centric cereal and have already distributed half of those to my friends in P-town. Three will stay in my collection and the other three will be shipped out east to another fellow Cubs fan.

While up north my wife and I went out on the Kankakee River with our stand-up paddleboards. The river was a little high and it moved a little quicker than what we're used to. 

 We saw Laura's dad along the side of the river shortly after we put in. Coincidentally, he was birding in the area and he had been watching us for some time in his scope. I guess we were more interesting than the birds!

We typically don't wear our life jackets, but we had a conversation the night with Laura's parents before about how rough the river was this time of year. I'm glad we had them on when we passed her dad!  We went about nine miles on the boards and saw two fawn, four turtles, numerous fish, and a water snake.  Good times and good exercise!

Today I have two baseball practices. One practice is for my spring baseball team as we get ready for the sectional contest tomorrow evening. I'm getting pretty excited for that game... we're on an eight game winning streak and only need three more victories to reach the final four in the state tournament. Wish us luck!  The other practice is for the summer team, which is made up mostly of sophomores and a few juniors, who will be trying out for the varsity squad next spring.

Have a great day, everyone!

SUP and Raccoon #6

My wife and traveled northeast to spend the Memorial Day weekend with her parents.  My mother-in-law always throws a killer picnic.  You know the type: the kind that makes you reach for your Thanksgiving pants.

To burn some of those calories off Laura and I went out stand-up paddle boarding twice this weekend.  On Saturday we trolled about the Kankakee River and we hit the Iroquois River on Sunday.  My new SUP board worked out really well.

Before we left Saturday morning for our weekend excursion I had to dump off another raccoon!

Yep, this one is named Fergie (aka raccoon #6).  She was bigger than the previous five and much, much grouchier.  She growled, snarled, showed her teeth and tried to take a swipe at me.  In the end though, she was just like the rest and sprinted off to freedom.

Thanks for all of the name suggestions  Fiona seemed to be a popular name choice, but she hasn't been terribly relevant as of late.  So, Fergie it is!  (Hat tip to Defgav for the suggestion.)

Here's the updated list of raccoon names:
Ashton (Kutcher)
Beyoncé (Knowles)
Channing (Tatum)
Demi (Moore)
Elvis (Presley)
Fergie (Duhamel)

We need a male name which starts with the letter G.  As always, post your suggestions below!

Weekend Pictorial Review

I had a personal day to burn before the school year expires and you know what the means: a trip to Wrigley!

 The Wrigley marquee has been repainted green and gold in a nice attempt to turn the clock back to the 1930's.  The Cubs are celebrating a different decade each homestand this season.

My day didn't start at the corner of Addison and Clark though.  Say hello to Beyoncé everyone!

Yep, raccoon number two.  Thanks to those who made name suggestions: Barbara Streisand, Kathy Bates, and Bjork.  All great suggestions, but I think my wife was sold on Beyoncé.

How about some fun on the way to Wrigley?  I've only had my new ride for about three weeks and I've already suffered through my first flat tire.

 No punctures or tears, but it appears instead I threw a belt inside the tire.  How does one accomplish that feat on a straight highway? 

Who accompanied me in playing hookie for the day?  My partner in crime was my sister!

 Jane is always a great travel companion.

Ten thousand Babe Ruth "Called Shot" bobbleheads were being given away at the game today.  Even with the flat tire we were able to make it in time to snag one!  Score!

Above is a picture of Babe calling what I'm going to consume next: a Chicago style hot dog with all the fixings!  Yum!

 So, we arrived at the game about thirty minutes before first pitch, but there were plenty of bobbleheads still available.  Why so?

If you guessed miserable weather conditions you certainly wouldn't be wrong.  Forty degrees, windy, and wet.  Yuck.  My sister and I downed four hot chocolates during the course of the game in an attempt to stay warm.

How about something new at Wrigley?  I'm game!  Here's a quick shot of one of the staircases to from the concourse to the field level.  Each one featured a scorecard from a previous decade. 

The former pitcher in me favored this one the most.  Oh, and for the record, the Cubs lost 4-3 to the first place Brewers, who did not have Carlos Gomez, Aramis Ramirez, or Ryan Braun in the lineup.  Go figure.

I worked the PA system for the high school baseball doubleheader on Saturday.  Sunny and 60!  Much better than the near freezing temps I suffered through the previous day.

Then I headed off to my parents' house to help my dad with a couple of projects and was rewarded with chocolate chip cookies!  Thanks Mom!

Sunday?  Sunday started much like Friday did.

 Channing Tatum? Following the naming guidelines given in the previous post, Channing is best my wife could come up with.  This guy managed to flip the trap on its side and take out part of a rose bush.  What a party animal!  Next up, a female name which starts with the letter "D."

I don't know that I've shown off my new mode of transportation yet on the blog.

In this case, it's a two-for-one shot!  I purchased a 2014 Mazda CX-5 about three weeks ago.  It offers plenty of storage and up to 35 mpg on the highway (when the tire is not flat).  On top of my new ste of wheels is my new stand up paddleboard.  I'm pretty excited to try it out next weekend!  Another hat-tip goes out to my mom for making the straps for the roof rack.

The weekend concluded with the class of 2014's graduation ceremony.

 Another school year is almost in the books.  About two-and-a-half more weeks before finals are completed and I can enter into my summer slumber! 

Thanks for stopping by today. For those of you hungry to see something baseball card related I think I sense another edition of Pack Wars coming up before too long!

Paddleboarding and Tree Planting

Christopher Columbus was responsible for my most recent three day weekend.  What did I do with the extra day?  Well, Columbus sailed the Atlantic Ocean to discover our great land.  Me?

I went on my longest stand-up paddle board excursion to date.

My wife and I shipped off from the American Legion east of Aroma Park along the Kankakee River and landed 6.7 miles later at Beckman Park in Kankakee, IL.

For the record, a yellow and green trail means that we're moving at a pretty good speed for paddle boarding and the orange and red are fairly slow.

You can see from the picture retrieved from phone app that at mile marker 4 our pace slowed considerably.  There was a wind out of the northwest and the tree line was blocking it until we made the bend at Aroma Park.  Those last 2+ miles too a long time.  There's even a spot in there where I stopped paddling to see what would happen.  Yep, the wind was pushing me backwards.  Crazy.

Monday I planted a tree for my sister.  She had to take down her tree in the front yard because it was interfering with the power lines.  I bought her a new one for her birthday: a nice ornamental pear tree that would not encroach upon the power lines.  

I picked my grandfather up and he supervised as I dug the hole, removed old roots, and eventually planted the new tree. Notice Grandpa there making sure I'm using good form!

Check out the "W" flag in the window.  The Cubs lost their last three games of the season and finished with a record of 66-96.  Yet, the Win flag still flies!

It was a fun weekend for sure!

The Vacation From My First Vacation

I wrote about a my trip out west a couple of weeks ago and how it left me a bit weary.  Well, my wife and I just returned from a restful trip north to visit family and friends.

Wisconsin is beautiful territory and offers plenty to do in the summer. 



Our first stop was the log cabin residence of my second cousin and her husband.  Laura and I arrived on their doorstep on the day of our ninth anniversary, which seemed pretty appropriate since they were the ones that are more or less responsible for introducing us!

Here they are on Sidie Hollow Lake with our paddleboards!

Next up we arrived at Marshfield to visit Laura's aunt, uncle, and cousin.  We played a family game of baseball one evening and ate the Thomas House Restaurant the other evening.  Thanks for picking up the check, Uncle Mike!

We also stopped by Jurustic Park and was amazed by the art!  Clyde, a retired lawyer, bounces around showing off his wares with the exuberance of a ten year old.  What a fun time!  

A flying pig caught Laura's eye and the next thing you know it's overseeing our backyard.  Crazy how that works sometimes!

The last leg of our trip involved stopping in Racine.  Our first stop was at Maggie and Justus' new house.  They have a wonderful and a beautiful family.  Yet, when they pointed out a Lamborghini parked in the middle of a full length basketball court I couldn't help but wonder if Caron Butler's mom would mind giving us a tour of her home! Crazy!

After some time catching up we took a stroll to the beach to see the lighthouse up close.  What a hot day, but at least the mosquitoes that plagued us the first two legs of our trip were no where to be found!

Lastly, we met up with another cousin of Laura's and his family and then spent the night with Aunt Beth and her pets.  I somehow convinced Laura and Aunt Beth to accompany me to Milwaukee to visit the Sprecher Brewery!

I had a great time and loved sampling all of the beverages.  I picked up some root beer infused brats for my dad and a couple of cases of root beer to take home with us.  Nice!

It was nice to get away with Laura and be able to kick back and put our feet up.  Visiting with friends and family was the icing on the cake!

Saturdays in Summer are Super

Yeah, I like alliteration, but I also enjoy stand up paddleboarding (SUP) and picnics with my beautiful wife.  Saturdays in summer are great for outdoors activities, and we took to the water and packed a lunch just a couple of days ago.  What a wonderful time!

Put all your worries on the back burner, relax, and just enjoy life.  That's what I'm talking about!

5th/3rd Bank Ballpark in Geneva, IL

Later that afternoon I departed on a two hour road trip to Kane County with my sister, Jane, and my baseball loving friend, Jim. 

We were greeted by the same guys that play music in the ballpark at Wrigley Field.  The Cubs were on the road so I guess they were looking to stay in practice and made the trip out to Geneva.

We saw my boy, Dillon Maples, struggle with his control and the Cougars fall 11 to 5.  Bummer.  I have have not had the best luck cheering on my teams this year. But that's okay, because we had many highlights during our evening.

 Let's start with dinner! 

 Wait, nope.  That's a picture of me and my sister with a cow from Chik-fil-a.  He wanted us to eat more chicken.  Hmmm...

He wasn't persuasive enough: souvenir Cougars helmet filled with one giant meatball covered in mozzarella cheese and sauce.  Man, that was a legendary meatball!  Definitely not chicken!

The Chik-fil-a cow wasn't the only mascot in the building.  The Zooperstars were entertaining the crowd between innings and they're always good for a few laughs.  To the left is a shot of "Cow Ripken, Jr.".

 The picture above on the right is the foul ball my sister caught off of Reggi Golden's bat.  Nice job, Jane!

Before the game the three of us played a few games along the concourse and came away with Star Trek posters, a hat that advertised the Bad News Bears movie, a t-shirt, and a free ticket voucher to a WNBA game.  Man, they are crazy generous in Kane County!

Generous?  Man, I haven't even touched on the baseball card slant yet.  It was team set giveaway at the admission gate.  Single A team set of the future Chicago Cubs?  Yes, please!

Oh, there's more...  the Cougars do a fifteen to twenty minute autograph session before each home game.  My sister collected six players' autos on a ball.  Jim got Dan Vogelbach's autograph and talked to Albert Almora a bit while receiving his signature as well.

Me?

I did okay, too.

Let's start with the autographs from players on the new team set I was just handed.

Rock Shoulders, the designated hitter, has twelve homers on the season and is also known for winning milb.com's Moniker Madness contest for the best name in minor league baseball.

Stephan Perakslis is the newly anointed closer for the Cougars.

The next two cards are both from the 2012 Peoria Chiefs team set, back when they were affiliated with the Cubs.

Oliver Zapata batted lead off on Saturday and anchored down left field for the Cougars.  He showed great hustle backing up Albert Almora when Almora just came up shy on a diving attempt in centerfield.

Reggie Golden was the Cubs' second round pick in the 2010 draft and he is ripped.  The dude has a build that would make most NFL linebackers jealous. 

How about some Bowman?  Sure, why not!

Jeimer Candelario won't turn twenty until after the season, but has twenty doubles already and shown a decent eye.  I like Jeimer because he's a switch hitter, has shown a good eye, and he hasn't started to fill out that big frame of his yet.  Jeimer's card is from the 2012 set.

Gioskar Amaya, from this year's Bowman set, is another young player who reminds a ton of Darwin Barney.  Steady, heady, and very smooth in the field.

My sister got this Albert Almora card (2010 Bowman) signed for me when she was getting her ball autographed.  Almora, the #6 overall pick in the 2012 draft, stands out from the crowd talent-wise.  He was using a bad pen, but I'll take what i can get!

 Here's my favorite from the group and the one autograph I wasn't going to leave Kane County without tracking down.  Dan Vogelbach on a thick 2011 Bowman gold parallel.  He's trimmed down since that picture, has proven to be a great teammate, has a great sense of humor, and has light-tower power. 

Yeah, I have another man crush.  I'm such a fan-boy sometimes.  With Rizzo at first base I almost wouldn't mind seeing the designated hitter be adopted by the NL just to see Vogelbach truly fit with the big club.

Paddleboarding, a picnic, and an awesome baseball road trip.  Yeah, I love summer Saturdays.

Paddle Boarding on the Illinois

Laura took the first three days of the work week off so that we could celebrate our anniversary together. 

This morning we drove up to Lacon, IL, and we tooled around the Illinois river on our paddle boards.  There was a stretch where I must have been stirring up the Asian Carp, because they were jumping out of the water and harassing Laura right behind me.

We used my cellphone, stored in a waterproof zip bag, to take the above pictures. 

One of the local Lacon residents chatted with us a bit as we were deflating the paddle boards.  I think he was curious as to what we were doing more than anything. He claimed that it looked like we "were walking on water!"

Laura took me to Castaways in Chillicothe for lunch and I devoured an "O burger" stuffed with blue cheese and bacon.  I wanted the cream cheese and jalapeno burger, but my order somehow got mixed up.  C'est la vie.   If you have two minutes, check out this video to get a feel for what the "O burger" is all about.  Pretty good if you ask me.

We returned home to find Gus busy sleeping in a box I brought him from Sam's Club yesterday.  Some things just don't change.

SUP

You may have noticed from the last entry that the first letter in each of the three paragraphs was enlarged, bold, and red.  The three letters spliced together spell SUP.  What is SUP you ask?  Stand up paddle!

Tom in Hawaii.

Laura's cousin, John Putes, introduced SUP to us when we visited Arizona back in April.  I must admit, seeing a deflated paddleboard on his hardwood floors left much to the imagination.  Fast forward to July and our trip to Hawaii: Laura booked us a couple of lessons and we had a blast!  The boards were fiberglass and a little longer than John's inflatable board.

Laura on Illinois River

The box that Gus was checking out in the last post oddly enough came from a Sam's in Arizona. I'm still wondering how a state that is mostly desert is a popular place to SUP.   Anyway, we are now the proud owners of two inflatable paddleboards.

The picture to the left was from earlier this morning at the Marshall County State Conservation Area, which is located north of Hopewell and just south of Sparland.






The water was a little choppy, but it was a beautiful day to be out and active.  We did a nice little out-and-back trip as you can see on the map.  We only saw a couple of Asian Carp, and no, the ones we did come close to didn't knock us from our boards.  I'm still working on the stand up part, but Laura seems to have mastered it!  She was born to SUP!