Thank you for your patience as pictures are loading.
Thank you for your patience as pictures are loading.
After spending hours emptying the garden planter boxes of tree roots (failed to install a weed barrier last year!), 2009's vegetable garden is planted and off to a great start. We are raising 6 Roma tomato plants, 2 bell peppers, carrots, broccoli, and zucchini. I hope to be able to make and preserve my own stewed tomatoes. Otherwise we'll be eating Romas for breakfast, lunch and dinner!
I am now a paid consultant! After a month of job searching, I am working with ASG - Advanced Systems Group, another dealer in the SouthWare Innovations family. I worked with and supported SouthWare at Trinecom and I think we'll be a good fit.
May has a busy month getting situated with ASG, leaving little time for social opportunities. Mid-month, however, I took a day to drive down to Santa Rosa and take in the Santa Rosa Downtown Market with Starla. Didn't see many familiar faces (of course, it's been 15 years since I last attended the market regularly), but did run into a few people I knew and it was fun to catch up.
Photo courtesy of Santa Rosa Downtown Market.
What can I say? There's still enough redneck in me to enjoy a night at the races when they include monster trucks and sliders!
Sliders racing was new to me. The track is thoroughly watered down to create a slick surface and the cars have been modified accordingly. All must be front-wheel drive and the rear tires have been replaced with skid plates. Add speed and away we go! Usually in a 360° spin!
I hadn't been to a Sonoma County Hot Air Balloon Classic in years, so when my sis decided to visit from Arizona that weekend, it made it a doubly-good reason to go - even if it meant getting up at 3:45am to do so! If you haven't ever been, I highly recommend it!
The gates open at 5:15 to allow spectators to observe the balloons being set up for the Dawn Patrol (a pre-dawn balloon glow and liftoff). Afterwards, another dozen-plus balloons setup and launch. I took picture after picture and you can see them in the view the photo album.
On the way home from the Balloon Classic, I stopped in Healdsburg to support Sarah at the Relay For Life event. Sarah lost her son to cancer and she has had a Relay team ever since. Relay allows us all to remember that cancer can be beaten and what better way to be reminded than during the opening lap, lead by cancer survivors.
Though not involved in the event planning for the first time in 5 years, I stopped by the Relay For Life for Inland Mendocino County at Ukiah High School to say hello to my cronies and support our local cancer survivors the following weekend. Each survivior held a purple balloon that included their name and how long each had been cancer-free.
Not many in Mendocino County will soon forget the 2008 summer fire season. In one night, 131 separate fires were sparked by a lightening storm. It took nearly a month for them all to be contained. CalFire and the CDF and numerous other agencies worked tirelessly to save structures and ensure the public's safety.
When the Ukiah Airport hosted Airport Day, it gave the citizens of Mendocino County an opportunity to thank some of those pilots that fought the fires from the air.
Numerous other planes and helicopters were on display and though this plane had identifying information displayed, I failed to get the details! I'm hoping a friend of mine who is an aviation archaeologist can help me out here!
Edited 8/5/09: The World War II era plane pictured is a Vultee BT-13.
Copyright © 2009