I Do Stuff…

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With the traditional start of summer comes the traditional trip to the beach.  This year the beach house in Rehoboth was not rented over the long weekend, or for the next one actually.  So we decided to take a family trip to the beach and join the hordes of people enjoying the great weekend.

Rehoboth Beach

My Dad was flying into BWI from a week long business trip and when he got to his house we were hitting the road.  For better or worse we didn’t leave his house till just after 4.  When I was driving north on 95 traffic was stacked going south.  Not only were people trying to head home early from work but you had all sorts of people heading to the beaching in southern Virginia and North/South Carolina.  I could only hope that fewer people were heading towards the Delaware coast like we were.  I must say that getting to Rehoboth Beach, even at 4pm on the Friday before Memorial Day, was easy.  It took just over three hours, about 20 minutes longer than a trip during the off season.

As is tradition on Friday night we went out to dinner.  The last time we were here we had drinks at the Cultured Pearl and absolutely loved the place when we walked around.  It is a Japanese restaurant with a huge sushi bar and an enormous deck outside.  The deck is one of the coolest things I have seen around.  As for the food the sushi was great, even if it was not made by a Japanese man.

Come Saturday it was time to start working.  As much as I wanted the weekend to be about relaxing at the beach, that was not going to happen.  We had a laundry list of chores that needed to be complete before the first tenants occupied the house.  First on the list was that stupid deck.  Over the entire off season we completely broke down and rebuilt the deck.  There is now a composite floor, new railing, and a hand rail down the stairs that looks all jacked up.  My dad and I didn’t have any ideas how to get it installed properly, so with a lot of trial and error we got it installed.  As long as you don’t look to closely, it looks fantastic!

a crowded boardwalk

The other major project was getting a more secure cover over the hole leading under the house.  It was completely paved over in an earlier project and the 1″ board of plywood was not holding up to well to the heavy weight.  So we had to undo all the bricks and jury rig a support structure.  Fortunately I had the brilliant idea of number all the pavers in order making the process of putting it all back together much easier.  It even came in handy on Tuesday when a plumber had to get under the house.

Other projects including painting the ceiling in the family room, mulching the new flower beds, planting two dozen plants, sanding the bench, then painting the bench black, and a half dozen other minor tasks.  Both Saturday and Sunday were filled with work, starting early and not finishing till 7:30 and 7 respectfully.

Not everything about the weekend involved work, I ate very well while I was there.  Not only did I get to eat sushi at the Cultured pearl on Friday, but we had NY strip steaks Saturday and BBQ chick on Sunday with all the trimmings.  Sunday we even took a long lunch and walked down to Whiskey Jacks.  It overs looks the beach and provides the perfect setting for beer and pizza.  I was even able to finish watching the Indy 500 while there.  My dad and I saw the start of the race, I made sure we took a break to catch “the most exciting start in racing.”  Speaking of racing, I was able to catch the Formula 1 race from Monaco at a reasonable hour with an 8am start.  Jenson Button again took the victory, win number 5 for the driver who’s team was in doubt one month before the start of the season.

This little trip to the boardwalk offered my only opportunity to get down to the beach.  The day was a little over cast but that did not stop the hordes of people from enjoying the beach and the boardwalk.  Every were I looked everyone had smiles on their faces.  Plenty of people were walking down the boardwalk and darting in and out of the various shops and restaurants.  The main drag, Rehoboth Avenue, was packed with more revelers as well.  One crazy thing was that even though the water was about 60 degrees and technically closed by the lifeguards, that didn’t stop people from having fun.  I found a group of kids playing baseball, others throwing frisbees, people flying kits, and one old guy doing some surf fishing.

bumper car fun

A great location for people watching was Fun Land right on the boardwalk.  This little amusement park offers all sorts of rides and carnival games, was so packed I could hardly walk around.  The swinging machine of death, as I like to call it, had everyone smiling and loosing their pocket change.  The bumper cars offered a great opportunity to get some pictures smiling and enjoying the afternoon.  Everyone down at the beach had not a care in the world, even if was only for a short time.  I doesn’t matter that we are fighting two wars, we have the worst economy in a generation, the possible bankruptcy of GM and other problems.  People at Rehoboth put all those problems aside for the weekend and were just having fun.

Come Monday morning it was time for me to leave.  After all the hard work and only a little relaxing I had to drive back to northern Virginia and join the throngs of others headed home from the long weekend.  The last time I did this it took Nancy and I five hours to get home, mostly from traffic on 404.  So after a good breakfast I packed my stuff and prepared myself for the long drive home.  I stopped by Starbucks and got some coffee, I figured it would help ease the pain of sitting not going any where.  Surprisingly it only took 4 hours to get back to Springfield.

Once there I got in my truck and did some more driving, yippie!  This time it was out to Nancy’s house.  She was having a BBQ with friends to celebrate the holiday.  I arrived a little later than planned, thanks traffic, and immediately was put to work.  I was in charge of making and subsequently grilling the burgers.  Nancy already procured the ingredients, so I simply had to put it all together and form burgers.  About the time I finished up the heavens opened up and dumped rain on our parade.  For the short run we munched on some excellent guacamole dip that Nichole made and chicken buffalo dip made by Nancy.

swing batter

No matter what rain dance we did the rain never stopped so I had to grill in the rain.  This is how you know I am a hardcore griller, or it could be we were just really hungry.  But I dawned a rain jacked and braved the elements to cook burgers, hot dogs, and sausage for everyone.  When we finally sat down to eat, it was totally worth it getting rained on for the great food.

As much work and driving as I did over the weekend it was still spectacular.  I still got away from home for the weekend and got to spend lots of quality time with my friends and family.  And isn’t that why I work so hard, so I can spend time with the ones I love?  I sure think so.

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My Aunt called me on Wednesday saying she was throwing a BBQ for my Grandmother on Mothers Day and my Mom was going to be there.  So of course I was going to show up for a great chance to see my mother’s side of the family.  It was a wonderful lazy afternoon on a day that finally saw the sun shinning.  Jim cooked hot dogs and hamburger on the grill along with all the sides you would expect at such an event.

bird sitting on his house

As the sun set and the light became soft I took advantage of the remote setting and got some pictures of the many birds around the yard.  Alice’s house in Fredericksburg sits on 7 or so acres of land with dozens of bird houses and feeders.  As you would expect the yard was filled with birds flying around also enjoying the late Spring afternoon.  I framed shots with the a fence, bird house, and feeders in the pictures.  I was even able to spot a rabbit right at the edge of the forest.

As the evening wound down and it was time to leave I decided to stop by the Chancellorsville Civil War Battlefield.  A couple weeks ago I visited the Manassas Battlefield and figured it would be a good idea to stop by this one.  Being far from my house I didn’t know the next time I would be down in the area.  The setting Sun again provided some good opportunities for great photos.  It was just to idyllic not to stop for a few minutes.

The small parking lot marked the site upon which the Chancellor House once stood.  During the last day of the battle the house burned down to the ground as the Confederates over ran the superior numbers of the North.  I was amazed to find out that all five cross roads from the original site are still being used today.  Add a few extra lanes and some black asphalt for color and you take once narrow dirt roads soaked with American blood and turned them into modern roads.   So as the sun set I got some decent shots of the surrounding field and cannons.

Chancellorsville Battlefield

a cold walk on the beach

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Took a quick trip up to the beach house this past weekend to get some work done on the house.  My Dad and his wife have decided to extend the patio into the back yard, so that meant a lot of digging.  Matt, Bobby, and myself dug about 8 square feet 6 inches down.  It wouldn’t have been so bad if the ground was not frozen two inches deep.  We couldn’t just take shovels and dig in the dirt, we needed a pick axes to break apart the frozen ground into large chunks.  All this digging on one of the coldest days of the week.  Temperatures didn’t get above freezing all day and there was a constant biting 15mph wind making things worse.  Fortunately the excavated dirt didn’t have to end up in a land fill.  We made a flower bed along part of the side fence, waste not want not.

Jesus geese

We also got some some work done on the deck. All the boards have now been replaced with Trex boards.  As a beach house the environment beats wood to death in a couple of years.  The Trex will provide a maintenance free and splinter free(!) surface for years.  The posts got a make over of white Vinyl too.  With the sun quickly falling and the wind picking up, the temperature was becoming unbearable.  So at about 5:30 we decided to call it quits for the day.

With the Super Bowl on Sunday (Steelers won in a good game) no one was sticking around for more work.  Sunday’s weather turned out to be in the low 60, sun shinning with a clear blue sky, and very little wind.  If we had that kind of weather on Saturday, we definitely could have gotten more work done.  But the bitter cold temps made work pretty difficult.  For me it was a little motivating, at least if I kept moving I was warm.

For  a work weekend I was able to get away for a walk early each morning.  On Saturday I headed down to the beach.  Surprisingly there were about a dozen people walking or running along the shore.  At least the cold weather froze the sand and made walking on the beach easy.  On Sunday I headed over towards Silver Lake and found a plethora of geese, ducks, even a blue heron.  I was not the only one taking photos either, I ran into a few birders at the lake.  They told me about a red billed duck sitting at the edge of the lake.  I saw it but didn’t think anything of it, apparently this duck is rare this far north in winter.

It was a lot of work in the cold this weekend but I love heading to the beach house with the family.  It was a great surprise to see Bobby, Tracy, and of course my niece Ellie.  Cute kid, growing up so fast.  The work is never done so we have already planned for another family work day in mid-March.

LOTS of ducks

For the second year in a row Nancy and I went to Rehoboth Beach, DE to celebrate New Years with my Dad and his wife.  We left early on NYE so we have plenty of time to get up there and relax for a while before a long night of drinking.  After a quick settling in period it was time to start drinking and getting some food cooked.  It is a tradition to cook a good meal and then head out to a bar for a quick drink, then return back to the house to celebrate the ball dropping.

party time!

This year we changed it up a little.  We still had a great meal of grilled salmon and chicken.  Then about 10pm we headed out to the bar for a couple of drinks.  Our first stop, Fins, was for a sole purpose, Nancy and I wanted to get oyster shooters.  Last year was the first time I ever had one and we wanted to recreate that unique experience.  They infuse their vodka with all these herbs, add an oyster of your choice, with a shot of Tabasco for good measure.  I am not a real big fan, but it is a cool thing to do.  Unfortunately when we got there they were closing down the place.  They had taken last call and were cleaning up.  Who ever heard of a bar closing at 10pm on new years eve?

Undaunted we headed to a second watering hole.  One we knew would be open and would be happy to take our money.  That place was Dos Locos further down on Rehoboth Avenue.  This place was very lively, packed, and ready to ring in the new year.  It was so packed we almost didn’t get a table, fortunately a couple was leaving and we took their table to crowd around.  We even got our old waiter from last year, Jeff, and he actually remembered us.  It was great to be back at the place.  We even got necklaces and party hats again.  I got the “special” one saying “Happy New Year.”  All it cost me was a pinch on the butt, a small price to pay for such a luxury.  After the first round we talked and decided to stick around for New Years.  At midnight we had a champagne toast to ring in the new year, the place was a mad house.

recovery time

Shortly after midnight we headed back to the house in the blistering cold weather, that was not a fun walk.  But with all of us being slightly drunk, and “feeling” warm, it was not that bad.  Once back at the house it was a few more hours of drinks, dancing, and conversation.  Also the always popular drunk calling to all our family and friends.  I was able to take a lot of great pictures, most of which my family would kill me if I posted, but they are so funny to look at.

The next morning came early for all of us.  But we powered through it with a good breakfast and lots of coffee.  Since we all took Friday off we were in no hurry to get back home.  We could just relax for a change on new years day.  For the most part we didn’t leave the house.  Simply cooked food, watched a little tv, and got things done around the house.  Even though it was a vacation, it was a working vacation.  Every time we are up at the house in the off season we take the opportunity to prep for the summer rental season.

let it snow, let it snow

For Friday we actually ventured out of the house for the first time.  We also got the hot water heater fixed early that morning.  It was the first hot shower I had in days and made getting up and out so much easier.  It was a day filled with some shopping for the most part.  With all the great deals and no taxes in DE, what a perfect time to spend some money.  On the way back it even started to snow.  And not just a little flurry that didn’t stick, no actual large flakes of snow that stuck to the ground.  When we finally get home I was so excited to get out and walk around.  With it being the first snow fall of this year I am excited for more, a lot more, like feet more.

By the late afternoon Nancy, my uncle and I walked down to the beach.  Not a good time to sun on the sand or get into the water, but still nice to walk around.  It’s is something to see the beach with snow on it.  I never really think about something like that but it does happen, I have the pictures to prove it.  With it being the late afternoon the sun was setting fast and the wind was back with a vengeance.  So after a quick walk it was back to the house for us all for another fine meal.

walk on the beach

Our final day was a quick one, get up, clean, and drive home.  With it only being Saturday there was still one day left in the weekend to enjoy before it was back to the grind and the start of a new year.  What a great weekend it was, even without hot water for most of it.  Got to spend time with my family away from home.  Ate good home cooked food, got a little shopping done, survived a mini blizzard and even got a little walking done despite the severe cold and howling wind.  Can’t wait till next year.

Merry Christmas

I just want to wish everyone, well anyone that happens to read my page,  a merry Christmas.  It has been a long day already for me.  Had Christmas Eve dinner at my Dad’s house last night that ran late.  Then I got up early to wrap all my gifts before heading back to my Dad’s house for breakfast and opening of gifts.  Currently I am taking a little time out for myself.  I am sitting at the cigar shop smoking a cigar before I head down to my aunts house for dinner.  Christmas is always a long day for me but I love every minute of it.