350 hours until Opening Day!

Maryvale!

Over the last two days, I had another fantastic baseball experience. Planning to spend two days in Phoenix to enjoy three Cactus League games, I left Saturday morning and arrived at Maryvale Baseball Park to enjoy the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers. This was a park we didn’t go to last year, so it was nice to walk around a new ballpark (they’re all great, just varying degrees of great). I enjoyed a brat (it is Milwaukee’s home park, after all) and a beer, and hung out by the Reds bullpen. We had pretty solid success with that last year (re: Brock’s conversation with Bronson Arroyo) and this year was pretty great also. I got to watch Aroldis Chapman warm up! He was like 8 feet from me! Also, I said this to a few people, namely Colleen and my Dad, but watching major league players toss baseballs to kids is never not the best thing ever.

Aroldis!

After that game, I was going to check into the motel I had booked and then head to the Dodgers and White Sox. Well…the hotel was, um, sketchy? I didn’t feel comfortable staying there, so I cancelled my reservation (and got refunded) and figured I would head down to the night game and then head back to Bullhead.

The night game was sold out.

Oops. Headed back to Bullhead and was home at a reasonable hour last night. Score one for a great experience at Maryvale and disappointment elsewhere.

This morning, I drove up to Las Vegas to see the Mets and Cubs play at Cashman Field, where the Las Vegas 51’s play. The 51’s are the Mets AAA affiliate, and I was struck by the ballpark. The Phillies A affiliate in Lakewood play in a nicer facility. The walls were high (to combat winds? Because they didn’t want to spend the money to grow grass to have a berm in the outfield? Because Vegas?) and not padded, and the park only sat about 9,000 fans.

The party area and field at Cashman

But the Mets brought mostly starters to the desert including David Wright, Travis d’Arnaud, Curtis Granderson (who struck out…Mets fans need to get used to that) and defensive whiz and center fielder Juan Lagares and the Cubs brought a lineup filled with guys trying to latch on and top prospects. So I can say I’ve seen the Mets play this year (AAA jokes, anyone?) and seen some of the top prospects in the Cubs organization, including Javier Baez and Kris Bryant.  And I scored a baseball! Mostly because I was alone in my section. Bearded guys always lose out to kids.

 

So it wasn't what I had planned, but it was pretty great anyway. Some observations from the road in no particular order:

1.       Two tumbleweeds

2.       A plastic bag blowing around that blew right into a trash can

3.       A guy facetiming and driving

4.       Someone parasailing out the back of a pickup truck on a dirt patch off the highway

I got a cap!

Last year was more fun, because these things are always more fun when you have friends to share them with. But I’m pretty pumped I got to do it again. 

"Slowing Down driving in...

I can finally breathe again"

        -Jason Aldean (Water Tower)

Had an opportunity to be home for a crazy, whirlwind of a tour of a weekend. It was a fantastic opportunity to enjoy a really beautiful wedding (and a couple great parties!) and continue the research that Colleen has asked me to do at the last two weddings we have been to:  watch it not with a critical eye, but with an eye toward our own party that is now roughly 8 months away.  Considering how many weddings she has been to since college (10+) and how many I have been to in my life (4) it’s easy to see why I need to pay a little extra attention to the details! Especially if I am going to be of any use for the next several months of planning. 

The weekend started off with Katy picking me up at the airport, and an immediate trip to Pats and Genos Cheese Steaks in Philly. We bought one cheesesteak from each place, cut them in half and had a taste test. I can’t swear to it, but I believe Pat’s won in my mind. Then we acquired Katy’s cat, Yeti, and headed to Beachwood. Yeti spent at least part of the ride on my shoulder like a parrot.

A brief stop home and then a trip to Malvern, PA, for the rehearsal and party, and wedding.  A truly fun and beautiful ceremony, and a couple of fantastic parties later, it was back to Beachwood.  Colleen went to celebrate Julie’s wedding shower with the female portion of the family, and I was lucky enough to spend time with Dad, Smithbauer, Morgen, and Mr. Byrnes, drink some Yuengling and eat some meat on a stick. That evening, we got a chance to look in on the hall where our reception will be held, and were thrilled with it. The owner was flexible, helpful, excited about what he does…really a great opportunity for us.

The final day of my trip home was Monday. I got to take my favorite (almost) 7 year old to school. It started simply enough, Morgen letting me in, and a quiet 45 minutes before it was time for Jay to wake up.

Then his door was locked. And he was reluctant to help me open it. I played his “look for the lock thing” game for a minute, and we had a five minute back-and-forth about whether he would let me in.

Then he decided to let me in.

By slamming the door open and tossing himself on the bed. My man has 13 year old girl DOWN. Once he realized I was not his brother, it was like a switch flipped. He was fantastic.  He showed me his Cub Scouts Merit Badge. He showed me his Pinewood Derby trophy. He showed me the Batman stuff that Grandma and Grandpa got him in New York. He got dressed and brushed his teeth and we got him off to school on time.  I also got to have a lovely lunch with Colleen, her Grandma, Gram, and Aunt Mary Ellen. Then it was off to the airport and back to Bullhead City.

Another airport goodbye with Colleen, a 2:15 AM arrival time, and a negative report from the substitute made today a challenging day. But a productive softball practice and two happy cats at home made it a positive one.

Looking forward to the next trip back. 

Prepping to start Quarter 7 in AZ

A whirlwind of a break is coming to an end with me on the couch in front of the NFL Playoffs. The apartment is clean, two cats are asleep, and I’m refreshed and ready to start the third quarter, and all the schedule changes and challenges that will go along with it.

Break started with a trip home, a ride from Sean and Morgen and a stop at Amy’s Omelet House in Cherry Hill. That afternoon was fun as family and friends got together and ate pizza and had some cold beers at Mom and Dad’s, then we went to the Office Lounge and the Toms River Diner.  That catapulted me into a few days of working at The Candle Shoppe again, a couple of Wawa Gobblers (!!) and several Porkroll Egg and Cheese sandwiches from Bayside Bagel in Silverton.

Christmas Eve was a blast; watching Jayden and Ryan play together is really what Christmas is about. Prior to the party, Colleen and I helped Jayden paint birdhouses for Grammy, Julie, Katy, Grandma, and his mother. He was a riot, telling Grandma when she walked in that “Don’t worry about these, Grandma, these are just for random people.” This was after he pointed out that it would be “awkward” if Grandma walked in while we were painting hers.  He also read me a book. He’s getting so big!

Christmas Day was wonderful, too. Colleen and I spent Christmas Morning at Mom and Dad’s, which included some AWESOME hot sauce on the tasty egg thing that Mom made. Then we spent the rest of the day with her family, which was great. Her family is wonderful, wonderfully welcoming to me, and we were able to share lots of laughs. I even got to help out in the kitchen, as Colleen and I helped prepare dinner.

Then, for reasons unknown to me, we got onto the longest flight of all time (it just would NOT END) and landed in Vegas again on the 26th…and didn't get into the hotel until late. Though standing in line for the shuttle to take us back to my car in the Economy Lot was amusing, it also took forever. We spent the night in Las Vegas (which included our neighbors in the hotel coming in at ? o’clock screaming the lyrics to What Does the Fox Say?) and then drove the six hours to Salt Lake City, Utah. There was a time change we forgot about, and we stopped extra times because we were both exhausted, so the trip effectively took 8 hours, and because of various other delays we lost out on naptime prior to the rehearsal dinner for Patrick and Hilary’s wedding, which was a lot of fun.

The wedding day saw Colleen off early for bridesmaidy things, and me with a four hour marathon of Bar Rescue. Cool. I even got it together enough to walk across the street to SubWay for a pastrami sandwich (any port in a storm, folks). The wedding ceremony was very nice, and afterward, I wound up in a college bar in downtown SLC with another boyfriend of a bridesmaid while they did pictures. OK! The reception afterwards was a ton of fun, really a great party, and I got to spend it with good people. Colleen set me up with a few of her college friends while she was occupied. It was a fun time.

Then it was back to Bullhead, lunch with Paul and Robin, and a stopover at Price’s. Colleen was supposed to leave Wednesday morning…another quick turnaround in a break full of them. Somehow, her flight was switched to Friday, which allowed her to be there when we picked up our new cat. 

Really a good break, but an exhausting one, and the fact that I got a couple of extra days with Colleen at the end was fantastic.  Back for a quick trip in February to celebrate another wedding. Can’t wait!

Pondering a Po Boy

So this one came to me sort of randomly. A list of the top sandwiches I’ve ever had. 

I guess the first thing that this requires is a definition of the word sandwich. Does a wrap count? No, I think it does not. Do tacos count? No, not unless they’re wrapped like a wrap…which would make them a wrap, no? Sandwiches, I think, require bread. 

Next: is this a list of best sandwiches in general, or specific sandwiches? I think it needs to be a hybrid. Do homemade sandwiches count? No. Do hamburgers count? Also no. I think they’re a different breed.

So without further ado:

1. Peace Maker Po Boy Sandwich, Acme Oyster House, NOLA: Fried oysters, fried shrimp, lettuce, tomato, and tobasco mayo. Traditional Po Boy roll.  It was wonderful on every level to sit at the bar at Acme Oyster House, drink a local brew, and enjoy this fantastic sandwich with Colleen.

2. The Vermonter, Noonie Deli, VT: Ham + cheddar+ green apples+ honey mustard+ homemade bread= sandwich of my dreams. This was #1 for a very long time on my list, and then New Orleans happened. 

3. Purple’s Pleasure, Noonie Deli, VT: Turkey, Bacon, Tomato, Red Onion, Avocado, Jalapeno Peppers and Cheddar melted with Lettuce and Garlic Basil Mayo, homemade bread…another fantastic work of sandwich art from the Noonie Deli.

4. Porkroll, Egg, and cheese on a bagel: This New Jersey classic deserves a spot in the top five no matter what else happens…this is the one that stays no matter how great the next sandwich is. Find it at your local 24 hour diner!

5. Cheese Steak, Jim’s on South Street, Philadelphia, PA: because you order it “Wiz/wit” and you need a million napkins to keep yourself clean as you eat it and walk down the street.

* While Jim's continues to reign supreme in my mind, Pat's is a very close second. It probably knocks everything down a peg below this, but I can't discount the deliciousness of L Gormet, so Pat's stands as a cheesesteak related footnote of mmmmmm.

6. Smoked Sausage Sandwich, Mighty Quinn’s BBQ, Manhattan, NY: When you walk in, you’re immediately taken with the smell of smoke, and you know you’ve got real barbecue.  The sandwich is made on rolls that come from down the street, its substantial, the sauce is fantastic, and they serve beer.

7. Pulled Pork BBQ, Pigman’s Barbecue, Kill Devil Hills, NC: While the quality of the meat isn’t up to snuff with High Cotton, their easy style and killer hot Carolina Barbecue sauce puts them over the top. That, and the tradition.

8. Pulled Pork BBQ, High Cotton BBQ, Nags Head, NC: Their BBQ sauce leaves a little to be desired, but the meat is tender and delicious. They do so well on their meat, and on their hush puppies and barbecue beans, that the lack of a proper Carolina Barbecue Sauce can almost be overlooked...almost.

9. Italian Sub: A real one. On a real sub (or hoagie, I guess) roll. No nonsense, no pretty boy crap, just lettuce, tomato, onion, salt, pepper, oregano, oil and vinegar.  Hot peppers optional.

10. Almost anything at L Gormet, Beachwood, NJ: A little out of the way place that does FANTASTIC work with food.

NOLA

South Louisiana is a world away from Mohave County, Arizona.

Southern Louisiana Christmas...Shrimp, Crawfish and Crab!

My journey east began with the usual drive up to McCarran Airport in Las Vegas, and I got there plenty early, parked, breezed through security, and found my gate.

Time for a reward! You know what’s a good reward? A beer. So I went and had one…and that’s where I met the Comic from Calgary (who legitimately finished jokes/sentences with “eh”) who made friends with the guys on either side of him. I was one of them. He bought a round…or two…and told jokes. We laughed quite a bit, and then he left. I managed to find my gate again, find my seat, and nod off for the short flight to Houston, Texas. There, I found my gate, napped, boarded, napped, and then got to see Colleen!

That first day, we wandered the French Market, ate some Jambalaya (which was awesome…just a first salvo in the “please try everything here” battle I was about to undergo), and got to talk to Jayden on the phone.  We also went down to Jean Lafitte National Park's Barataria Preserve and walked along the bayou for a while. It is a neat little park, changing from forest to wetlands to a floating grassland. It reminded me, in various places, of Blue Spring State Park outside of Orlando, Florida and Payne’s Prairie (Payne’s Prairie…Payne’s Prairie…PAYNE’S ****ING PRAIIRIE) State Park, also in Florida.  Mostly, I took it all in and enjoyed the HELL out of being with Colleen, which was far too long in coming. I am in Arizona working hard, and she is doing wonderful things with and for wonderful people in Louisiana, but the being apart part of this isn’t easy.

Selfies on the banks of the Mississippi

The next day was Thanksgiving! I love Thanksgiving…it’s always been the day we celebrated my birthday at home, but mostly I love to cook with my parents (mostly drinking beer and cooking duck with Dad outback) and spend the day with everyone. So this one was weird…being away from the family also going out to eat. We went to Arnaud’s in the French Quarter, and while I was thinking about preserving the duck tradition, I figured…you’re in Louisiana. Get seafood! So I asked our gracious, too kind hosts what they recommended, and wound up with sheepshead (it’s a fish, I promise) Meuniere. Goodness gracious. I keep dreaming about that fish. We also had these little puffed potatoes that were light as air, and Shrimp Arnaud which was served cold with a “creole remoulade”. The meal finished with two fantastic desserts…but what stood out most was the kindness of Colleen’s host family. I met many, many kind people while I was in Louisiana, and it is really wonderful to know how many great people Colleen has watching out for her!

Friday was my birthday, so it sent us back to Bourbon Street and the French Quarter for a walk and a sandwich at Acme Oyster House. We sat at the bar, had a Abita Amber and chatted with the oyster shuckers. Only in Louisiana! And I got to have the Peace Maker Po Boy sandwich…fried oysters, fried gulf shrimp, lettuce, tomato, and tobasco mayo…oh man. That is a top 5 sandwich (but that’s maybe another post).

Birthday breakfast!

After lunch and another walk through the French Market, we headed south to Grand Isle State Park. The area reminded me a lot of the southern part of the Outer Banks…the Rodanthe and south area. We ate dinner at…hahaha. What a silly night this turned out to be. From the wonderful lunch at Acme Oyster House to Rice-a-Roni cooked in a microwave and bad off-brand potato chips in the hotel room. Honestly? I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. We shared some beers and laughed a lot and watched Modern Family. It was a great birthday.

A gift from new friends.

Saturday found us wandering Grand Isle State Park, watching the terns and pelicans and dolphins play in the waves and enjoying an utterly glorious day. Sunday, I went to church with Colleen at her little Presbyterian Church in Bayou Blue. It was a lovely service, and the little sanctuary was filled with wonderful, welcoming people. The service felt very much like a welcome home for this wandering Presbyterian.

                               

After church, we enjoyed a fantastic breakfast with the pastors, walked through an art show, and then I headed to the airport. As sad as I was to leave Colleen, at least I got to come home to this:

Also…less than two weeks until I’m home!

Next travel stop...NOLA

The last few weeks have been both exhausting and exciting.

MVESD #16’s two week break at the end of September started with Mom and Dad’s Trip West. It was a ton of fun to hang out, to host my parents (weird) and to see Mom’s reaction to a lot of things out here…especially the scale. Everything out here is so much bigger, so much wider…you do have to see it to believe it. They went to Bryce and Zion as I finished up my Structured English Immersion class in Scottsdale, then we alternated between things to do in/around Bullhead (oh, another brewery?) and longer trips to the Grand Canyon and Death Valley. It was really a lot of fun, and I’m glad we planned it for the week we did…since the government went ahead and shut down the following week and we wouldn’t have been able to do half of what we planned.

The second week of break found me staying home as much as possible. The end of first quarter was tiring, as it saw me in and out of Scottsdale, up late for softball games in the league I joined, and coaching my tail off. That rolled right into the first week of second quarter, and then it was off to Phoenix again. Eric was staying in town for a few days, so I headed south and we spent an afternoon hanging out and generally having a good time. Every Phoenix/Scottsdale trip included a trip to Waffle House. The last one…well, shades of Toby Keith!

" And he called last night from South Carolina

He said I fallen in love with a waitress
That I met at a Waffle House diner.

He said the years seem to roll on faster
Than they did back when we were kids
Then we need us a break from the grindstone
That's exactly what we did.

We put in a phone call to Sonny
Then we stayed out all night long
We drank a few cold ones, then told a few old ones
And sang another verse to the song."

The song's called Nights I Can't Remember...Friends I'll Never Forget

Finally, and a little off topic...

As the volleyball season rolls to a close, and I begin prepping for boys basketball, now seems like a great time to reflect on the season that was. Coming into the season, I didn’t have the greatest volleyball IQ in the world, but I worked hard to learn as much as possible. We conditioned. We did drills. We learned how to play as a team, to bump and set and pass to one another to control where we hit the ball. Every player on the team improved, some growing into our best players after having little to no experience before this season. I am tremendously proud of my players for how hard they’ve worked, and how positive they’ve stayed, and how they never, ever quit no matter the score. We have won exactly one match. But we have only been blown out twice. We competed in every game, had chances to win in every game, and they grew from that experience. I have gotten used to losing (STR baseball, Presby softball over the last few years), but that doesn’t mean I love it. I have worked very hard to stay positive…7^th grade sports is about development, improvement, and laying the foundation for a winning 8^th grade team as they get ready to roll into high school. I have been very lucky this season, privileged, to coach a team of athletes who have chosen to come together and support one another, to help each other improve, throughout what has been a tough season.

Hats off to you. And thanks for the experience.

Such plans they have, Such Gods they have

Deep in this Nation of Heat- Joe Pug

So...I see a lot of those that I care about writing about their new experiences, and I felt the need to share this new school year with all of you.

This year has dawned to a kinder, gentler, Mr. Hennessey. I am way more relaxed and confident in the classroom, confident in my management and in my lesson structuring skills. Confident in my ability to hook my students when the need arises. Confident in my ability as a volleyball coach?

Sort of. I am learning along with my players, but I am looking for information and skills and drills. I know how to coach middle school kids, and I am learning the game. We will do well, because we have players who care, and they are having fun.

Also, I may do a billion pushups this season. I ask the players to do pushups when they forget basics (calling the ball, bumping to a teammate rather than directly over the net), and I told them that I would do them when they did things correctly...so many pushups at the end of the week! That excites me.

The first quarter is running down now...and a rough three weeks is ahead of me. The next three weeks consist of: a professional skills test, a weekend in Phoenix, 4 volleyball matches, and another weekend in Phoenix.

The thing I am excited about: My parents are coming out right after that last weekend in Phoenix, and Mom has all sorts of things planned. I am excited to show off the mountains and the sunsets, and all of the things that make Arizona wonderful. I am excited for the Grand Canyon, and a trip to Sedona, and the brew-pub tour that is sure to follow.

I am excited for Eric's trip to Vegas, and to go and visit him up there and spend some time with more family. I am excited for the various sports I will be coaching, and for this year in general. Colleen and I were talking, and talked about me moving into a leadership role as I grow older and gain more experience in my field. I am thinking that, since I will have to go back to school for a degree anyway, that guidance is the right way to go. I just want good things for my students, and having a position where I can focus on that is ideal. We will see where life takes me (NJ, LA, wherever else...), but I am really fired up about my life and where it can take me.

Also, a lot of my positivity comes from this little critter that now lives in my apartment with me. I promised Brock that I wouldn't blow up Facebook with pictures and posts about my cat, Red, but I do love her. She is such a pleasant little critter to share space with, and she likes to be near people, and she is a love. I like how she greets me at the door when I get home, and how she races in to hop up on the bed in the morning when I wake up. I just can't imagine one of Mom's cats still liking people after being in a tiny box for 13 hours (including a flight)...other than Rose. She would probably forget that she had been in a box roughly five minutes after she was removed from it. Bottom line here is that Colleen has given me another wonderful gift, and I cherish that.

It is really nice that I get to look forward to work everyday, and that I get to play golf semi-regularly. Tomorrow will be the third time I've played since coming back, and what I have learned is two things: 1) stay long in my swing, and 2) make sure there is beer on hand.

Golf is a wonderful thing. Looking forward to playing with Dad and Smithbauer again.


UPDATE:

Here is something that always inspires me...Thanks to Taylor Mali for this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxsOVK4syxU