The Phoenix 10K  -  Nov 8th, 2009 6:18pm

Well the results are in and I officially survived!  This morning in just over an hour and 10 minutes I crossed the finish line of my first 10k.

It was an interesting experience to say the least.  Definitely one of the harder things I've done in my life.  Not so much the distance but going from not being able to run a mile non-stop to running a full 10k in just a 2 months.  Fortunately I had some friends to help push me along.  Thanks to Jon and McCoy for giving me some wise words and a swift kick in the ass when I needed it.

I suppose its worth saying that I managed 5k without missing a beat - something I'm proud to say I trained up to.  The last 5k though was just determination and will - there was no way I was ready for this and my body really started to give out around the 9k mark.  I've spent the last 8hrs on the couch drinking kool-aid and coding trying not to move much.  Maybe if I do one of these again some day I'll be in better shape.  I definitely have enjoyed running in the morning but not sure how I feel about the racing right now :)

Well here is a link to my race and some pics I took this morning.  Thanks again to everyone for all their encouragement and kind words.

A New Backyard  -  Oct 19th, 2009 8:34pm

I have had an ongoing battle with my backyard for several years now.  Each side has claimed victory at various times, but overall I was definitely loosing the war.  Fortunately my friend Jon is a landscape designer and with a lot of help and a good dose of cash I think I can finally say mission accomplished.

My hatred for this yard didn't begin right away.  It took several months of pulling out overgrown plants, a plague of beetles and a relentless battle with ants for control of my grass before I really began to seethe.  It was the bougainvilleas that really did me in though.  These devil plants grow like mad without food or water, are covered in sharp spines that can go through a tennis shoe and shed paper like flowers constantly that gather in every crevice of a yard.  Basically they are the most horrible plant ever conceived.

The yard was originally very green but over the last few years as I slowly killed off more and more of it, brown became the color of the day and it finally turned into just a big dust-bowl.  I've basically avoided opening my backdoor for the last year since I've been prepping for Jon's crew to come in and resurrect color in my yard.  I'm happy to say though that the dark days are over and I've been lounging around my backyard for the last week enjoying the huge new patio and the distinct lack of dirt or dead grass.  Check out the pics to see the transformation and I'll post some pics of the furniture as well as soon as I get a chance.

The Big Sandy Shootout  -  Oct 18th, 2009 8:59pm

A few months back I randomly stumbled upon this website for a machine gun and large caliber weapons shootout called The Big Sandy: http://www.mgshooters.com.

This last weekend a small group of us spent a day and a night at the bi-annual shindig and all I can say is wow.  The daytime shoot alone was worth the drive out there, and the opportunity to see and shoot the kind of firearms they had was simply awesome.  The night-time shootout was truly epic though and I was unprepared for the scale of it all.

To get to The Big Sandy you have to drive about 3 hours northwest of Phoenix.  A dirt road just outside of Wickenburg takes you to a parking lot at the bottom of a hill where you can camp and pay either the $200 shooter or the $25 dollar spectator fee.  On top of the hill is another parking lot bordered on 1 side by RV's and on the other by the actual shooting line.  The line itself is about 1500ft long and sectioned off into 25ft areas where folks setup their guns and shade tents.  They fire off the top of this hill down into a small valley where targets are setup.

Most of the people there were shooters as opposed to spectators.  There were only a few vendors and food and water while purchaseable were pretty sparse.  This was an affair for people who really loved to shoot and you could see the pride in peoples faces as they would talk about their guns to any interested party.  Everyone I met there was very friendly with the 1 exception of the RC plane guy who cussed constantly as he worked on the planes with a set of badly bandaged fingers.

I would have expected a more militant group, but these people had as much in common with hippies as weekend warriors.  They lit off fireworks all night, played disco music at lunch (not a joke) and generally had a great time out there in the desert.  There were a ton of vets who really cherished the weapons they maintained from wars they themselves fought in and the folks at the rental booth were only too happy to show me to load an M-16 and aim a 50cal.  Everyone was celebrating being free in an age where they confiscate your water at the airport and it was something we all noticed.

As expensive as these guns are to fire, people only shoot them for a few minutes each day and I was amazed how much time people spent unjamming their guns and working on them.  During the day, the line really only lit up when the target plane flew by.  I have some video below that shows just how nuts that was.  The night shoot on the other hand was a little more intense.  Between the fireworks, the flares and all the tracers, it was only a few minutes after dark before the whole hillside was on fire.  We were amazed that the whole desert didn't go up in flames.  I wish my camera could have captured the color and the intensity of the lightshow that night but its not even close.

There is not much else I can write which isn't in the pictures and videos below except to say thanks again to Kellie, Denny and McCoy who joined me on yet another crazy adventure.  Good friends make even a simple evening hanging out in a parking lot a great time :)

Oh and if your having any problem getting the videos to work just download VLC.

10k Training  -  Sep 20th, 2009 11:20am

When I was a kid, running was just a fun way to get from point A to point B.  It was more entertaining than walking and less dizzying than tumbling.  Then about the time I got my first bike, it suddenly became an undesirable mode of transportation.  By the time I got a car, running was a desperation move, fueled by adrenaline and the sounds of chasing dogs.  So when my friend McCoy invited me to run a 10k with him on Nov 1st, I probably should have said no.

No just isn't my style these days.  So here I am, 2 weeks into getting from the couch to the finish line of a 10k in 8 weeks.  Not only that but the goal is to finish in under and hour!  Not an impossible task, especially considering I have friends who run super-marathons, but one that is going to require some serious effort on my part.  To help me out I'm using an app called RunKeeper.

RunKeeper tracks my runs via the GPS in my phone and then uploads the data to their website.  I can share out each individual run which I'll link up in this post every couple of days.  Check back to see how I'm doing if your interested and wish me luck :)

• 11/3 - 53:02 - 7.37km  (non-stop)
• 10/28 - 17:35 - 2.43km
• Got the man-bear-pig flu
• 10/8 - 30.16 - 4.78km
• 10/2 - 22.12 - 3.66km (non-stop)
• 9/30 - 19:55 - 3.11km (non-stop)
• 9/24 - 30:30 - 4.72km (jacked knee)
• 9/23 - 30:13 - 4.45km
• 9/21 - 28:10 - 4.26km
• 9/19 - 27:55 - 4.09km
• 9/18 - 27:31 - 3.94km
• 9/16 - 23:52 - 3.45km
• 9/15 - 20:12 - 3.04km
• 9/13 - 17:02 - 2.53km
• 9/11 - 12:14 - 1.86km
• 9/10 - 11:15 - 1.59km

Today (11/3) was my last run before the big race.  I was down with some nasty flu like crud for about 2 weeks so its going to be a stretch.  I am feeling better now but while my distance is up my speed is way down.  I think I should be able to finish still, however my goal is now 1hr 15 minutes to keep from killing myself.  I'll try to put up a new post with some photos and the results once I recover.

Oversized Sturgeon  -  Aug 27th, 2009 5:53pm

On our last day in Oregon, my dad and I met up with guide Charlie Foster who spends his whole year fishing on the Columbia for sturgeon.  He takes people out for what they call keeper sturgeon (4-5ft) about 2/3rds of the year, but during this magical time he guides exclusively for what I can now say with all seriousness - Oversize Sturgeon.

As per the norm, we met Charlie at a dock called The Fishery around 6:00am just west of the Bonneville Damn.  He actually reminded me a lot of our last guide Scott - quiet, light hearted, but with a slightly serious edge.  I guess when you fish for waterbound Buicks all day long you kind of have to be?

We got a great view of the area from the second we put out on the water.  This was a much more lush environment than Astoria.  Removed some distance from the cold ocean winds, this place looked like the island from King Kong.  Giant trees, a wide rolling river with dark green water and mountains covered in mist.  It was the perfect place to house a monster.

The fishing gear didn't look nearly as big as some of the rigs I'd used offshore, but the poles looked disturbingly thick at the base.  The actual rigging was 75lb test braided line with a 3lb lead ball followed by a 150lb nylon shock leader wrapped around and thread into a full 12" shinier with a big barbless hook.  After anchoring, Charlie floated these rigs down the river behind the boat using a second pole that clipped a massive bell shaped foam bobber to the main line.  When the bait was far enough back, someone yanked on the float line and the weight/bait dropped straight down at that spot and stayed there.  Another place, another Darwinian setup.

As soon as we yanked the float off of the 2nd line, Charlie said "3 minutes" with kind of a wry smile.  Unbelievably - 2 minutes and 50 seconds later one of the poles started to bounce and a few seconds later I set the hook.

At first, it didn't seem like that big a fish.  I could feel some weight as well as the vibration from him swimming around.  Then all of the sudden this beast breaches 150 feet behind the boat.  "Its about an 8 footer" Charlie says nonchalantly and my dad starts yelling where's your camera!?  Meanwhile I start to wonder what the hell I just got myself into as I fumbled the camera out of my jacket pocket with an adrenaline clenched hand.

When the fish decided it wanted to go downstream, the line screamed out against the drag and Charlie cut loose the anchor line to follow.  It was all I could do to hang on, and for a while the fish had the rod pinned to the edge of the boat.  The handle of the pole was digging into my stomach with each move the fish made so I was only too thrilled that Charlie offered me a fighting belt.  When my dad finally got that situated the fish had turned its head and I took the opportunity to try and take back some line.

I knew what I was supposed to do -- rear back then reel down.  Only the fish was too heavy to pull back on.  Every move I made was made twice again by the fish.  I managed a few feet here or there but my back was quickly tiring and within about 10 minutes I was in trouble and my lower back was burnt up.  I had a plan though - crouch in the corner and use my legs and the side of the boat for leverage.  It worked and over the next half an hour I was able to battle the thing back toward the boat and eventually get back on my feet.

All said and done Charlie estimated the fish at a stout 250lbs.  Above average but not completely unusual(says him!).  We snapped a few pictures, released my opponent and I tried to figure out what on earth I would do if we caught something bigger?  At some point I just wouldn't have enough strength to pull back and then what... get beaten?  Fortunately it was my dads turn next.

It took a little over an hour before he hooked up with a monster as well - a 6 1/2ft dinosaur that also flew straight out of the water right after getting hooked.  My dad was consumed and at 68 he stood there toe to toe with that fish only stumbling a few times when a run caught him off guard.  A bad back, bad knees and a nasty tennis elbow were all forgotten.  This is what we came here to do and damned if he didn't take care of business.  About 30 minutes later with a smile from ear to ear he pulled the sturgeon boatside.  Another impressive fish that weighed in around 150lbs.  How Charlie could be the only guide there that day is beyond me.  We had each had the experience of a lifetime and it was only 8am.

As it turned out, the rest of the day slowed down quite a bit.  I caught a few smaller fish between 3 and 4 feet, as did my dad.  Then just after lunch, my father hooked up with a 7 footer.  This one gave him only slightly more trouble as it was heavier (@175 lbs) and ran out a ton of line at first, but Charlie was great at maneuvering the boat into a good position to help fight the fish.  I have some great video of him fighting this second fish and will hopefully have it up soon.  Its impossible to get a good photo of them boatside as they are too heavy to lift and too long to fit in the lens from within the boat.

What I really needed for the day to be absolutely perfect was to catch just 1 more oversized goliath.  All dogs have their day and this was mine fortunately, as that's exactly what happened.  Right before our trip was to end, I hooked into a solid 7ft fish that was fresh from the ocean and full of piss and vinegar.  It jumped completely out of water twice before shooting straight to the bottom then running us sideways towards shore.  These fish put you in a corner and keep you there, but I'm proud to say I didn't have to resort to any tricks this time.  Following my dads example I stood tall and got pulled down only once when it finally saw the boat and made a long run back.

This is the kind of experience that I could gush about for days.  Its pointless though really.... its something you have to experience for yourself and something that every fisherman should do at least once.  Thank you Charlie for a great day I'll never forget, and thanks dad for being there.  I couldn't ask for a better fishing buddy :)

Salmon Fishing In Astoria  -  Aug 27th, 2009 4:10pm

"I've never caught a Salmon" is something I'm thrilled I can't say anymore.  It was one of of many fish I hope to check off my list in the next few years as I travel around working with various guides.  This trip was with Capt. Scott Pitts on the Columbia river in Astoria.

My father and I joined some folks from Idaho: Mike, Karl and Ela on a full day fishing trip for Silver and Chinook Salmon.  Apparently there are just a few weeks each year that you can harvest these fish in each area, so when that time comes to a town like Astoria,  the fishermen hit it hard inundating the river with boats and crab pots.

We added to this fray from first light, showing up at the doc to meet Scott in some cold and seriously wet morning air.  There was a little bait shop called Tackle Time next to the boat ramp that sold licenses, snacks, and drinks.  They open when the sane world is still sawing logs and were full of sass when we walked in at 5:30.

As the sun rose, I got my first real view of Astoria and the River itself.  A massive river as wide as a lake, spanned by bridges and surrounded by cliffs and forest.  It looked as I always imagined Alaska would.  The real surprise was that the fast moving water wasn't that deep.  Occasional shipping barges were navigating very specific channels as they went out to sea.  The water was moderately warm, blue/green and just slightly salty - the result of the ocean mixing with the Columbia during the incoming tides.

The area we were fishing is called buoy 10, and I think everyone in the zipcode knows about it because they were all there.  The horizon was boat to boat on each side of us.  Scott had told us earlier that this was supposed to be a record run of over a million fish and since each angler can only keep 2 fish a day, folks show up daily to land the pricey fish.

The fishing is done almost exclusively by trolling.  Large weights with spinners are kept down in the fast moving waters by downrigger or glider.  Cut herring or spinners are used as bait and most boats which hold 5-6 fisherman put out 1 line per person spacing all that equipment out by depth.  Our guide described this kind of fishing as long periods of waiting interrupted by complete panic.  This turned out to be absolutely true as nearly every fish we caught immediately raced for someone else's line in the mass of tackle that flowed behind our boat.

Things started off slow that morning and after an hour or so Mike nabbed the first salmon on a fluke as he was pulling out his line for us to go elsewhere.  It wasn't a bad catch at around 7lbs, but it was a native so we had to let it go.  Only hatchery fish are allowed to be kept.  They clip a fin on all test-tube fish so that you can tell the difference.

The day picked up though as the tide changed.  The fish came in waves where you would sit and bullshit for a few hours.  Then suddenly 3 lines would all hook up at once.  When they did it was complete panic and we actually lost a lot of fish.  Mike and my dad definitely had the lucky seats as they each picked up 3 or 4 fish while I had a tougher time just landing a single small silver all day.

The salmon there are heavy enough that along with the current they can snap a leader as I found out after my father handed me what was probably the biggest fish of the day (upwards of 15lbs).  I felt pretty bad as you could see it thrashing about 20ft behind the boat - but that's just how it works sometimes.  If it was always guaranteed then it wouldn't be such a thrill when you did land one.

The weather changed as often as the tide did.  At some points it was downright hot and at others it was cold and wet.  One of the most interesting things we ran into was the "rip".  A standing wave where the out flowing river met the incoming ocean and created a turbulent wall of water.  Following this for a while netted us our best fish including a 8-9lb silver for Mike and a scrappy Chinook for Karl - the only one we landed that day.

We were still short a couple of fish though as the day was supposed to end.  Scott really wanted me to land a few more fish though and help everyone limit out so we actually stayed out till nearly 6 oclock running up and down a specific stretch of the river landing about 2 fish per pass.  Unfortunately we had to call it a day before I got another strike, but it has to say something great about the day that I didn't mind.  Good company, a beautiful day, and my first salmon was more than enough to hold me over till our sturgeon trip a few days later.

An Oregon Fishing Vacation  -  Aug 27th, 2009 1:40pm

I just returned from fishing and exploring the northwest coast of Oregon.  Astoria, Seaside, Tillamook, Portland --- even having visited as a kid, these were just names on a map for me.  I had either missed or forgotten the kind of grand beauty and wonderfully cliched Americana that has survived there.  Not to mention the fantastic food or experience of catching a prehistoric fish the size of car.

I will have to do a separate post on the angling experiences as they were as varied as any 2 days could be in the lifetime of a fisherman.  For now I'm going to be a little self serving and just try to record what we did and post some photos as I want to reinforce these memories.  To let them sublimate like those from my childhood would be a tragedy to say the least.

I originally planned this trip as an excuse to take my father fishing and was going to keep the traveling to a minimum.  The extra day or so that resulted from my poor planning really turned out to be a blessing though as even after our long delayed Saturday flight we still had time to visit Portland our first evening.  Having survived the day on $11 margaritas we were scoping the town for dinner and on the recommendation of my friend Dale I chose Jakes Famous Crawfish.  I had to try the crawfish of course which was decent but my dad picked the fresh sturgeon which was a first for me and really quite good.  A pricey meal but neat place to visit before driving up to Astoria.

Highway 30 from Portland to Astoria is dark and winding.  Its a strange way to experience that land for basically the first time.  I kept thinking this is the kind of place sasquatch would live should he be seeking a summer home.  We finally arrived at our hotel, the Shilo Inn at Warrenton just after midnight and promptly became unconscious.  We would be salmon fishing at 5am the next morning so this seemed like a good plan.

If you've ever watched the movie "The Goonies", then you have some idea what Astoria and Warrenton look like as it was filmed there.  Lush green hills surrounding beaches and cliffs that back up to the end of the Columbia River/the Pacific Ocean.  Its rainy, foggy, and oppressively beautiful.  The towns seem to have become stuck in time somewhere around 1985... I couldn't tell if they were just beginning to die or just starting to come back to life?  Either way, we made our way that next morning to the docks and spent the entire day on the water.

Whether or not the fishing was good really depends on your measuring stick but it was definitely a great experience.  We hit a cool little brewery called "The Wet Dog" on our way back to the hotel that evening where I scarfed down a clamburger(another first) and some really great beer.  I knew I'd be a little sad to have to leave in the morning without exploring more, but traveling along the coast would prove to be a fun journey in of itself.

We had a full day to burn on Monday so we followed the coastal roads all the way from Astoria down to Tillamook stopping whenever we saw something that peaked our interest.  We hit a couple of beaches, some scenic views and even took a tour of the Tillamook Cheese factory.  What really struck me though was this bizarre little bay-side setup called The Jetty Fishery(they have a website, but I just can't subject anyone to it).

For $75 few bucks, this place will loan you one of their boats and some crab pots for a few hours to do your own crabbing/oystering.  When you return they'll steam up your catch and let you eat it right there seaside.  We didn't have quite enough time to try out the boats but we did purchase some of the mornings catch for lunch and had the best dungeness crab I've ever eaten.  It was a quirky, strange, backwards place that only reluctantly let us borrow a mallet to crack the crab shells, but it was absolutely perfect the way it was.

We left the Jetty and after having our fill of free cheese and ice-cream we made one last stop in Portland to get some donuts before trekking east to our final fishing locale.  Voodoo Donuts is a Portland landmark and a must visit for anyone who has a moment there.  They have giant head sized glazed demons and captain crunch covered angels.  They even sell a bacon maple concoction that I've been kicking myself for not noticing.  High on sugar, starch and grease we headed out of Portland to our final destination - The Cascade Locks.

The locks and the area surrounding Bonneville Damn are just stunning.  The forests and cliffs look like something out of the cretaceous period which fits perfectly the kind of sea-life that lives there.  Sturgeon that are big enough to swallow a bowling ball, and Chinook that can weigh in at 40lbs or more swim upstream every year to spawn.  Its a serene and peaceful place.  The kind of thing that makes me understand why people risked their life to travel there years ago.  Bascially the polar opposite of Phoenix.

As I said earlier, I'm saving the fishing tales for another post but holy crap... the next day was surreal.  By the time I went home I could hardly feel my left hand and I had finally caught a fish bigger than I was -- a dream I'd held since I was a kid.  I can't say enough about the place, the people and even my father who was a great traveling companion on this journey.  It will be a cold day before I let go of the memories I've made this time.

Bacon The Restaurant  -  Aug 17th, 2009 4:24pm

It was bound to happen.  Mainstream America has finally picked up the nets enthusiasm for that loveliest of meats - Bacon.  I submit the Scottsdale eatery called nothing less than "Bacon" as evidence of this transition.  You can be the jury from there.

That's not to say I'm entirely disappointed.  Bacon is actually a really great place to have breakfast or lunch as the food was good, healthy, and they have a cool vibe.  Its just that had this place existed a few years back, the menu would have been completely oriented around someones fascination with bacon's smokey goodness.  As it stands today, bacon is actually an afterthought in most of their dishes.

Jon joined the rest of our group as we headed back from the trip to Flagstaff.  He was actually the one who turned me on to the place as I'd never heard of it.  Bacon is a definite Scottsdale joint with a modern look and the inescapable feeling that your surrounded people who are less than they want to be but more than they think they are.  Its not nearly as pricey as I would expect though and 2 people can get out for a $20 between them with a little care.

We had a good sample of the menu - eggs, french toast, etc.  Kellie had something they call "The Hangover" which is actually a Canadian dish: Poutine - only with eggs.  I was stoked as this was on my list, quite good, and really odd.  True to its moniker, the bacon at Bacon is also really good.  Just be careful if you go on weekends.  Apparently we got there just as the crowd was waning, and as they are still pretty new the service is spotty at best.  Highly recommended though.

I tried to find their website but apparently they don't have one yet?  For now this should help.

A Journey To Flagstaff  -  Aug 16th, 2009 8:06pm

I spent almost 6 years living in Flagstaff while I was going to school at NAU.  During that time I learned to love the town, and I thought I had experienced most of what it had to offer.  Turns out I was wrong, as I just got back from a fantastic trip to Flag where I got to visit Sunset Crater, Lowel Observatory, and the Lava Tubes - 3 things I had somehow missed during my life there?

I joined Mccoy and Kellie this time around.  They are great traveling companions - low maintenance folk like myself who are always up for whatever madness might be in store.  We left early Saturday morning and after fueling up with a high density breakfast of SweetTarts, beef jerky, and potato chips, we headed north - straight for Meteor Crater.

For anyone who hasn't been like myself -- Sunset/Meteor Crater is just that... the impact zone for a truck sized rock that hit ages ago.  Its about a half hour northeast of Flagstaff and apparently has visiting hours just like most holes in the ground do not have.  I'm not sure what govt agency runs that place but its apparently underfunded as they require 15 bucks to walk in the gate.  Not the worst spent money in the world as they have a cool little museum and some free viewing scopes, but it was a little odd.  A pretty impressive site overall & stunningly windy up on the rim.

After leaving the crater we made a pit-stop at "Kamp".  A strange roadside hazard that exists just south of the crater.  Not sure what drew me to the place - at first I thought it might have been an active scout camp or something.  As we turned off and drove up though, it became obvious that a former highway stop had been abandoned years ago and become a hangout in the middle of nowhere.  The pictures do a better job of describing this oddity...  A strangely beautiful ghetto.

We eventually stopped off at the hotel, then drove west of Flagstaff to visit the Lava Tubes.  They aren't the easiest thing to find.  The road is marked once you get close, but I didn't see any signage from the highway.  A few miles down a forestry road, we found a small parking lot and something that looked like a great big well.  Even when we got close it didn't look like what it really is - a mile long cave open to public exploration.

This isn't hard core spelunking, but its not exactly accessible either.  The first few hundred yards are pretty treacherous, and the cave is damp and cold (@50 degrees) year round.  Entering is like descending into Golum's home.  Its dark beyond black and something about the structure absorbs sound putting you in a state of complete sensory deprivation.  The cave is one long subway tunnel with a few 3 or 4 foot crawls.  Its almost completely devoid of life and structure save for what the lava left behind.  Its very eerie and a truly magnificent place.

It took us a little over 2 hours to make it to the end and back  - @3/4 a mile.  I loved every minute of the experience, but I was very happy to see sunlight.  Something about the lack of sensory input makes you a little wonky.  I think we were all happy to get on the road and head out towards Lowel Observatory.

I can't say much about the observatory as it was getting dark when we arrived.  I think if I visit again, I'll go before sunset so that I can check out the telescopes themselves.  They seemed like monstrous steampunk creations in the red glow from the observation lights.  We got a chance to look through the biggest one, a 26 inch refractory scope pointed at a star cluster.  Much blurrier than I expected, but still pretty damn cool.

We didn't stay at the observatory long because Kellie was wiped out and hadn't slept in a day or so.  The trip was capped off by a dinner at Beaver St.(their brambleberry brew is my favorite beer on earth) and a breakfast at Bacon in Scottsdale - I'll have to do a separate write up on that soon.  For now I'm spent and its time to take a rest.  Thanks for the great trip guys, can't wait for our next adventure :)

Pool Party Weekend  -  Aug 10th, 2009 2:12pm

There must be something in air which recently triggered everyones need to host a pool party.  I'm not complaining mind you -- I feel blessed to have friends who are both willing to throw these bashes and request my personal brand of mayhem.  Its just that I'd wish they would space it out a little.  This last weekend there were no less than 3 of them - 2 of which were birthdays and thus required my attendance.

The first up was Kellie's birthday which was being held at the Point South Mountain/AZ Grand/Whatever they call it now.  Its a nice hotel on the west side of Tempe and a cool place to host this kind of bash.

A big part of the work gang showed including Amy and her husband Jon, McCoy and Trudy, Cupp, Denny and a whole host of others.  Its always a good time with this group and that night was no exception.  Kellie had a friend who worked at the hotel and kept the booze flowing which was appreciated and consumed by all.  There were no fatalities which is always good - though McCoy did try to give everyone who crashed at the hotel hypothermia by rolling the thermostat to the edge.  It was a great night but maybe a little much for a leadup to the next days shindig.

Fortunately Trudy's birthday at the Princess was a lot more docile.  In fact, the Princess is just kind of a calming place in general - unless your Cupp of course who shortly after arriving rammed headlong into the side of the pool.  Most of the same crew arrived, as did some of Trudy's friends and family - it even began before sunset which is an oddity for anything we do as a group.

The Princess has 4 or 5 different pools and we moved from one of the smaller ones to the southern/bigger pool as the kids headed off to watch a movie in the huge central one.  McCoy, Denny and I made a $60 In-N-Out run and then we spent the remainder of the evening moving between the pool, hot tub, and consuming burgers and fries.  Sure the occasional sparkler went off in someones crotch but for the most part it was just a great relaxing night with good friends.