Pictures (Friday)

The parachuting guys coming in before the game...they land much faster than I expected

Jared Weaver warming up in the bullpen
Me and Tom on the lawn...notice the sun? Yay sun!!
Grant and Bobbie at the ballgame
We were really roughing it on the lawn

Pictures (Thursday)

Flowers in foreground...cactus in background
Grant taking in the action

Basehit!
Tom enjoying the game in the shade

Take me out to the ball game...

My oh my, is it warm here! The sun won't stop shining, there are no clouds, it's in the mid-80s every day. Absolutely ridiculous. I kid, I kid (a little bit of a Triumph reference there...). Everything I said about the weather is true, but it is absolutely wonderful. We are definitely taking full advantage of this change in climate.

Yesterday we started the day off at the library (needed reading material for the pool visit later in the day) and then headed off to the pickleball courts. Tom and I are giving Grant and Bobbie a run for their money but we are still losing more than we win. It really is a fun game. All of the people out here are always so excited to see young people, we're like magnets that draw them in. At the least, they always want to say "hi" and see where we are from. We run into a lot of people from Michigan so they always want to talk more once they find out where we're from.

Our "busy" day continued after pickleball when we went to the pool for a couple of hours. The water is the perfect temperature, but it is a bit chilly when you get out (there's just enough of a breeze); of course that only lasts about 3 minutes - the time it takes for all of the water to evaporate off. I wore sunscreen but it must not have been enough because I got a little bit of a burn on my forehead and shoulders. It should be fine by the end of the day though.

We had steak and brats for dinner before heading off to the Angels-Rangers game. Jared Weaver was pitching for the Angels and I had a chance to watch him pitch in the bullpen before the game (we sat on the lawn right next to the pen). It was amazing to see his pitches up close like that. His fastball (93+) looks even faster when you're that close - but the truly amazing thing was his off-speed pitches (in the 70s) in contrast to his fastball. He definitely made some guys look silly in the game with those off-speed pitches. There were also some fireworks during the 7th inning stretch.

I was definitely ready to be out of school for a few days. It's nice to be able to play. I made the comment the other day at the softball game that everyone out here is recreating their youth. Think about all the things that you did as a kid: Little League, playing pick-up games with your friends, swimming at the pool. They are living a lifetime summer vacation! Except they can drive (though usually in golf carts, which kids could probably drive anyway).

Alrighty then, I'm going to wrap up this post and get some pictures uploaded for everyone to see. Looking forward to your comments...

Sunshine!!

We made it out of gray, dreary Michigan to the land of the sun! I would have posted sooner but I had internet connection issues yesterday. Our trip almost started a day later than we had planned: They had overbooked the flight and were offering round trip tickets, hotel, and a meal to get bumped to the next morning. We considered the offer but ended up just coming out as scheduled. The flight was good...and fast, we got in almost a half-hour early.

Yesterday was a busy day for us - we took full advantage of the sunny, 80 degree weather. We started by getting tickets to the baseball game tonight (we're going to see the Angels and Texans). We picked tonight because they have fireworks after the game :-) After that, we went over to the pickle ball courts. Those of you still unfamiliar with pickle ball should Google it...it's basically a cross of tennis, ping-pong, and whiffle-ball. After pickle-ball we headed over to the softball diamond since Grant had a game. After that, we stayed outside and golfed. I beat Tom (we only got in 14 holes because of darkness) for the first time.

It's a great time to be in Arizona. It's probably the "softest" time of the year. Many of the plants are in various states of bloom, and the new growth on some of the bushes actually gives them a welcoming texture. Even better, the orange trees are in bloom so the air is filled with a wonderful scent that seems to deepen proportionately with the sunset. There are little bushes with purple flowers that have an aroma much like a lilac, so that's an added bonus.

Today we hope to continue enjoying the weather (especially sweet since Michigan is expecting 2-6" today and we're expecting 86 degrees and sun). We're gonna try to play some pickle ball again this morning, then maybe head to the pool, have an early dinner and head to the baseball game. I hope to add pictures tomorrow so be on the look-out for those.

A new adventure...

...well, it's sort of a new adventure. This is our 3rd trip out to the Phoenix area to see Grant and Bobbie (Sun City West, AZ for all of you actually keeping track). I figured the road trip blog worked great for me since I like to journal on vacation and I'm a much quicker (and more legible!) typer than writer.

So, all of that being said, if you would like to follow along on this trip, check back over the next week or so. I doubt that there will be images of grizzlies and massive waterfalls, but you might catch pictures from a wicked pickle-ball game!!