Post-Season: Hello, October!

Day 271: Day 1 of “Roommate Week 2010!” Pumpkin carving! You'll see above, that the pumpkins very adequately summarized our household...We've got "Vote Nov. 2nd (Kelly), American Flag (yours truly), Clover (Go Irish--Dominique), a droid (yea...Lauren), and a high heel (Ashley)...Apparently this is all we needed to do to meet our neighbors, suddenly they were complimenting our pumpkins and we’ve lived here all summer without meeting them! Don’t worry about those nasty squirrels we have, Ash and Kelly concocted some poisonous brew that we poured over them. We haven’t had any problems.

Day 270: Columbus Day! Apple picking may be all that I remember it to be, but it still was an enjoyable adventure with Rachel!

Day 269: Kind of a spur of the moment trip to Annapolis with Javy today. I’m not one to crave Oreo’s, but once I start eating them, it’s hard to stop…Perhaps it is good we did not venture into this place!

Day 268: Today I had the day completely to myself with no idea of what to do. I spent the morning trying decide, before I finally gave up and just got into the car. I had my GPS and National Parks passport and just started to drive. I ended up cruising down 295 into the foothills of Maryland, where suddenly I found myself driving up through the trees and the hills that I normally only see from a distance. On the other side was a sunny valley through fields, farmhouses, and dusty roads spotted with the brown and white signs indicating Civil War battle movements. My final destination was Antietam battlefield, the sight of the bloodiest day in American history. In less than 24 hours, there were 23,000 Union and Confederate casualties, and this was only in 1862, three long years before the war would come to an end.

Day 267: Civil War Memorial in the hills of MD (Left)

Day 265: Homemade pizza. YUM

Day 264: Thome on the cover of SI with a great article inside; adding to my collection!

Californ-I-A :)

Day 263: Sunset from the skies!

Day 262: Stayed on the beach for 5 days and this is the only semi-sunset I glimpsed..still beautiful when surrounded by clouds! (P.S. Happy Birthday to my wonderful mother!)

Day 261: The Ritz-Carlton, Dana Point

Day 260: Day 259: Thank you, Mr. Jelly Belly man :)
Day 258: Day 257: Orange County John Wayne Airport, after an uneventful flight of mostly sleeping and pondering the vast crevices, walls, and holes in the ground that naturally ought to be filled with water (Arizona truly was unlike anything I’ve ever seen!), but instead were dry as could be, I arrived at this quaint airport and was thrilled to see this larger than life statue of John Wayne with our beautiful flag as his backdrop.

In memory of...

Day 252: A 2006 Naval Academy grad died in a helicopter crash today. He was a SEAL and here is their mission statement in honor of him:

In times of war or uncertainty there is a special breed of warrior ready to answer our Nation’s call. A common man with uncommon desire to succeed. Forged by adversity, he stands alongside America’s finest special operations forces to serve his country, the American people, and protect their way of life. I am that man.

My Trident is a symbol of honor and heritage. Bestowed upon me by the heroes that have gone before, it embodies the trust of those I have sworn to protect. By wearing the Trident I accept the responsibility of my chosen profession and way of life. It is a privilege that I must earn every day.

My loyalty to Country and Team is beyond reproach. I humbly serve as a guardian to my fellow Americans always ready to defend those who are unable to defend themselves. I do not advertise the nature of my work, nor seek recognition for my actions. I voluntarily accept the inherent hazards of my profession, placing the welfare and security of others before my own.

I serve with honor on and off the battlefield. The ability to control my emotions and my actions, regardless of circumstance, sets me apart from other men. Uncompromising integrity is my standard. My character and honor are steadfast. My word is my bond.

We expect to lead and be led. In the absence of orders I will take charge, lead my teammates and accomplish the mission. I lead by example in all situations.

I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight.

We demand discipline. We expect innovation. The lives of my teammates and the success of our mission depend on me - my technical skill, tactical proficiency, and attention to detail. My training is never complete.

We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend.

Brave men have fought and died building the proud tradition and feared reputation that I am bound to uphold. In the worst of conditions, the legacy of my teammates steadies my resolve and silently guides my every deed. I will not fail.

Randoms

Day 251: Play-Off Bound

“You did it! You did it! You said that you would do it,
And indeed you did. I thought that you would rue it;
I doubted you'd do it. But now I must admit it
That succeed you did.” (My Fair Lady)

Well boys, it’s about time. No more of this Game 163 nonsense that we’ve been stressfully putting up with for the past 2 years. With 11 games left (10 after sweeping Cleveland this afternoon), the Minnesota Twins are the first team in the league to lock-in their position in the play-offs and for a team that has battled injuries all season and lacks the budget of many, that’s pret-ty darn good.

Day 249: I leave this to your own imagination…but we had 5 mattresses to get rid of and our community doesn’t allow them to be left on the curbs…

Day 248: Amanda and I had a lovely breakfast in Old Town with Miss Arnn on this sunny almost-fall Sunday!

The "Original" Washington Monument

Day 247: The first monument built to George Washington was erected in 1827 by the town of Boonsboro, Maryland. I happened to come across a sign on the highway and pulled off to see it. After a short hike you approach a breathtaking view of the valleys as well as this humble monument built for George.

On July 4, 1827, at 7 a.m., most of the 500 inhabitants of the town
assembled in the public square. A dedication service was held at noon. The
volunteers gathered for lunch, and then work was resumed and continued until 4
o'clock, when the monument stood 15 feet (4.6 m) high on a base
54 feet (16 m) in circumference. Plans were made to complete the tower to a
height of 30 feet (9.1 m) "after the busy season," and in the fall of that
year this was done. (Wikipedia)

Day 246: Appalachian Trail

Day 245: My life summed up on my desk wall. Hillsdale. Twins. Washington Prayer. "WHY America is free" article. Picture from Nancy's wedding :)

Day 244: Tell me why I was not aware of the rewards cards for Dick’s before now? Well. I know why. Probably cuz’ my wonderful parents are generally the ones making my purchases there. Well, unfortunately that is no longer the case, so now I’m set to go!

Day 243: Nobody believes you.

September 11 in Arlington, VA

(Pennies placed, Lincoln heads up, at the cemetery where the Gettysburg Address was delivered on November 19, 1863)

Day 242:

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Day 241: Lauren and Amanda and I wanted to do something patriotic for 9/11, so we hit the road for Gettysburg yesterday. I've been before, but on this beautiful day, we really took our time to stop and see what we wanted while driving around the battlefield. Thanks to the bookstore, we bought a great driving tour on CD and learned a lot as we drove the loop. I highly recommend purchasing (or borrowing) one when you go, or you'll miss out on a lot of the history that can be learned about the three day battle that killed thousands of Americans. (Memorial to the soldiers from Pennsylvania)




Day 240: While 9/11 obviously comes up pretty regularly in our country these days, I rarely think about the fact that I live a mere mile from where one of the planes flew into the Pentagon. Today, I was reminded by the flags that hung from every overhang and all of the tall buildings in Rosslyn (http://http//www.flickr.com/photos/26092895@N02/4983900825/). I took my own picture down my block, where there were also flags flying, and this firetruck literally drove through as I snapped the picture.

"Deep thoughts" w/ some "Levity" sprinkled in..

Day 239: It’s time for another deep pondering. While I was at softball the other day, I meet a fellow Midwesterner, currently working away from his Minnesota-based office. After telling him I was from Minnesota, he looked at me with relief and asked me what I thought of life out here and whether or not I thought people were rude. I responded that I didn’t know if “rude” was the term, but that it does lack the “Minnesota nice” that I once took for granted. The typical Midwesterner will talk to those around them and smile or wave on the street, to complete strangers, and while you may come across a rare gem here, typically, this will not be a part of your DC experience. You know what David, the Iowan transplant to Minnesota and then placed in DC, pointed out as the difference? He said, the first thing anyone asks you is “what do you do?”. Phew, maybe I’ve been out here too long, because that didn’t seem so weird to me, but he is SO RIGHT! This is the easy conversation starter, from a business reception, to a bar, no matter the setting, this is generally how a conversation begins. I don’t think David has anything against finding out the career of a stranger, but to him, this is a way to find out how successful they are, not a genuine question of who a person is. So I guess the better question that I’ll aim to ask, can be a follow-up to this one David deemed as so impersonal—“why, do you do what you do?” Most people I meet are employed by the government, a non-profit, the military, a contractor, or a law firm, but each of these probably took painstakingly long hours of schooling, decision making, training, and prayers, and those are what, in my mind, are worth hearing about! Hopefully, this unexpected question won’t be so hard for a person to answer, and if so, it will beg for examination.

Day 238: Levity for COB in EDU.

Day 237: I found myself sitting here this afternoon, updating myself on the MLB standings as I do occasionally throughout the week. It’s getting to that point where suddenly, it’s not just the Central division that matters, but the East, West, and Wildcards matter. I click around, toiling on the home page, checking out our homepage, when I begin to think about the play-offs. Seeing as I have nothing to do at work (note the total sarcasm), I look up the ALDS and the play-off schedules and start crunching scenarios in my head. I am pleasantly reminded that we made it into October in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, and 2009; I briefly smile at the years gone by, the time treasured in my first and last years of college, beating out the Tigers to make the move forward. The moment is quickly snatched away, like it often is, as I am also reminded of those rich ominous pin stripes that somehow tear away at our core each time we attempt to reach our full potential. It doesn’t matter how the regular season ended, how we got there, or who is playing, we are shut down with a finality that makes next year seem like it is ages away and October of next year in a different dimension. I step out to head to the bathroom and walk down the hall, despising the Yankees and their fans. Their fans who may just own a hat that makes them look cool, their fans that sit at the front desk of my office, not really caring about the sport until they’re winning and they can nod with the “I told ya so” look that only really shows if someone raises the topic of hating the Yankees, and their fans who are respectably die hard, but will never cease to be a thorn in my Minnesotan side. I take a breather, sit back down, and start to sift through the post-season possibilities. There are too many if’s, too many games left. I sit back, text Michelle in anxiety, write down these thoughts, close the MLB browser, and turn to my calendar. 23 games left. That’s 7 series, 6 teams, and absolutely nothing I can do about it. Phew.