Very Hot at the Fair

It was still too hot to visit the California State Fair today, but I went anyway. Nancy thought the temperature was just too sweltering (a hundred four or more) and she decided to stay at home. It was probably a good decision, as the conditions were pretty miserable and somewhat unhealthy if you weren't careful, especially from around 4pm - 6 pm. It got a little better after that. A lot of people stayed home as the fair was not at all crowded.

I did get some nice pictures, though. I had three cameras with me - my Nikon, my Sony pocket cam and the Samsung Camcorder. They all came in handy and each served a specific purpose. I've just started processing the pictures and afterwards I will start on the video. A couple of pics are already on the blog and there will be more to come.

Update: The below link will take you to a video of some model trains that were on display at the fair. I very much liked this display - the detailing is exceptional.

http://s178.photobucket.com/albums/w275/jimdaviselkgrove/?action=view&current=CalironiaStateFai-ModelTrains.flv

Too Hot to Visit the Fair

It was a hundred plus today and with rather high humidity - at least for Sacramento. So, we will probably go to the fair tomorrow, as today was just too darn hot! I should have some pictures to post, after our visit. Even the great food at the fair wasn't enough to get us out of the house in this heat. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Freddy Farm Bureau

Most anyone who has been to a Kentucky State Fair knows about Freddy... as in Freddy Farm Bureau. Freddy is the greeter for the fair and he sits on a bale of hay in front of Freedom Hall. You can't miss him - and if you get close enough - he'll talk to you.

Right after I took the picture that you see posted to the right and at the bottom of the blog, a few kids walked up to Freddy and he greeted them by asking if they had ever been on a farm. They said they hadn't and Freddy said, "Well where do you think your food comes from"? They didn't have a response to that question, but one kid did ask Freddy why he didn't stand up. Freddy moaned about this being his fiftieth birthday and he was just too tired to stand up. That's what I have always liked about Freddy, he answers honestly. By that time I was getting a little tired myself and with the temperature at around a hundred and five and the humidity off the charts, I could readily relate to Freddy's situation. Too bad he couldn't walk over to the air conditioned exhibits like I did. Hang in there Freddy, I'll see you again in a few years!

Drury Hotels - Nice Accomodations

My recent trip to Louisville was the third time that I have stayed at the Drury Hotel on Hurstborne Lane. I really like the suites at the Drury, and compared to California hotel prices, they are quite reasonable. The rooms are spacious and they have free WiFi. Being a bit of an Internet "nut", that is something that is important to me. They also include a hot breakfast (sausage and eggs, french toast, biscuit and country gravy, cereals, waffles and a variety of breakfast drinks). I've pretty much stopped shopping around for hotels in Louisville as this one works so well for me that there really isn't a need to look further. Another bonus is the convenient location near the expressway and the numerous restaurants, shops and theatres near the hotel. It's a good place to stay for a home away from home.

Country Music at the Kentucky State Fair

Kentucky is all about country music and the Kentucky State Fair provides a showcase for many great country music singers. The seniors really seem to enjoy the "classic" country songs and Mike Linnig's tent lets you eat your catfish dinner while listening to the sounds of Hank Williams. Who could ask for more!

You can hear a sample of Hank's music at the link below:

http://s178.photobucket.com/albums/w275/jimdaviselkgrove/?action=view&current=HankWilliamsattheKentuckyStateFa-1.flv

"08" Models to Arrive at Showrooms in September

My car magazines are arriving weekly, with pictures of the new 2008 models. I've always liked this time of year. The new cars add an air of excitement to the season and it's fun to see what new and innovative products the auto manufacturers bring to market. As always, I"ll be going to the Sacramento International Auto Show in November, and while attending the show I plan to take lots of pictures. However, to tide things over until I can start taking some pics of the "08" cars, I've posted a picture of an oldie, but a goodie, to the right and also at the bottom of the blog. I took the picture of the Tucker, while visiting Balboa Park in San Diego. The San Diego Auto Museum is located in Balboa Park and they have several classic cars on display at the museum. Makes me wonder if any of the 2008 vehicles will end up as classics. We'll know more when November roles around and comparisons of the various models can take place.

Sorting Through Louisville Pictures and Videos

I've started to organize the various pictures and video footage that I took while I was in Louisville. Today I've added to the blog, a picture of Cain - Dwight's dog. The small version of the picture is to the right and the larger version is at the bottom of the blog.

Cain is a very friendly dog. He does like to make a little noise when you first arrive at the door, but after he checks you out he then settles down and becomes quite docile. Cain, as you can see, is very photogenic and he doesn't mind having his picture taken. He gets along well with other dogs and I think he even tolerates cats. I always enjoy seeing Caine when I stop by Dwight and Linda's home. He's a part of their family and he gets a lot of attention from all family members. I hope to see Caine again - the next time that I come to Louisville.

Good Trip back to Elk Grove

Everything went smooth on my trip back home. The Southwest flights were on time, almost to the minute, and my luggage arrived in good shape. This is the first time that I've used Southwest to fly back East and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. All my other flights on Southwest have been inter state, or to Las Vegas.

The weather in Sacramento is hot - actually, make that real hot. Still, it isn't like the hot weather we had in Louisville, because we don't have to deal with the high humidity. Even though it hit around one hundred degrees today in Elk Grove, when the Delta breeze kicked in around seven o'clock this evening, it was quite pleasant.

Leaving Louisville Tomorow...

My visit to Louisville is winding down. It's been a fun week and I've enjoyed every minute of my time in the city where I grew up. I've been fortunate to have seen so many of my high school friends during this visit and in many ways it felt like I never left. This trip, I got to visit several places that I hadn't seen in as many as forty years. Even better, most of these visits were with dear friends that were willing to take the time to share their time. I appreciate that they were able to do this and I'm grateful for the time we had to spend together. All of them are like family to me and I look forward to another visit in two or three years. Stay healthy you all, and enjoy this great city that is your home. I'll be thinking of you, and sharing emails and phone call with you, so we can stay in touch. It's been fun! Thanks for the memories!

Westend Friends Gather at Kathy Hopper's House

Several of my friends from the Westend made it over to Kathy's place Sunday afternoon for some food and beverage and lively conversation. We came from places all over the map - California, Indiana and Pennsylvania. As usual, we were able to quickly update what had transpired since our last encounter, while making sure that we left plenty of time to rem anise about past days. The great thing about friends from high school is their ability to collectively weave stories together - by drawing from the memories of the entire group. What one may have forgotten, someone else usually had remembered - or at least had some recollection of the event, maybe even a slightly different version.

We had a great time looking at the DVD that I burned from some video footage that Tim O'Hara had shot over forty five years ago. Together we were able to identify most of the players participating in a shoot around in the alley behind my house on Larkwood - what is now referred to as "Westend Alley Basketball". We joked about Tim being able to capture some shots that actually went in the basket and marveled at our athleticism back in the day. Thanks for the footage Tim. Wish you could have joined us in the fun.

My vacation comes to a close tomorrow, as "Hop" and I join up for a visit to the State Fair. We're not sure if the weather is going to cooperate, it may rain, but if it does we'll just do and indoor thing and go gambling over in Indiana at the riverboat casino. We may end up doing both outings... who knows? It should be a fun day either way.

Louisville Art Cars

Dwight and I have been taking in the sights and sounds of the city. Yesterday we visited a place that I had worked as a teenager, the Fisher Meat Packing Plant, and surprisingly the only animals in sight were of the domestic type (dogs) - and they seemed quite content to be on the premises. The plant has been converted into a collection of art galleries, and named Mellwood Center (I assume the named was derived from the Mellwood bacon produced at Fisher's). The building now has a variety of eclectic shops and studios associated with art and the culture that surrounds it. A fascinating transition for me to see and also an unexpected road down memory lane as well. I told Dwight that my employment at Fisher's was actually a motivator for me to return to college in the fall of nineteen sixty-four. After three months I had had enough of the dollar and ten cent an hour workforce - not to mention the odors coming from the stockyards. A real eye opener at the time.

While at the galleries Dwight happened across his daughter Laurie and she brought us up to date on some of the happenings and events going on at Mellwood. One interesting feature was the "Art" cars parked in the parking lot. As you can see from the pictures to the right and at the bottom of the blog page, they are very unique. My friend Dave, back in Sacramento, has a vehicle that would qualify for an "Art" car conversion - in fact you might say that it is overdue - maybe he will consider doing so after seeing the Louisville cars. What do you think Dave - good idea?

Tour of Westend and Downtown Louisville

Together with my good friend Dwight Montgomery, who is from Louisville, Kentucky, we ignored today's heat and high humidity and visited several places in the Westend and downtown portions of the city where we grew up. We did some movie and picture taking along the way and after ward we ate at a restaurant in Jeffersontown, called Longhorns. We had a great meal, fillet steaks with some delicious side dishes (salad, baked potato, asparagus, mushrooms), and I captured a picture of Dwight at Longhorns - posing with his new friend - whose name escapes me at the moment. We had a fun day! You can see the picture to the right and also at the bottom of the blog page.

Great Flight - Right On Time

My flight to Louisville went very well. Both flights (Southwest) went like clockwork and I even got a break at the baggage claim - my bag was second onto the conveyor belt.

The Dodge Charger, that I'm renting from Dollar Rental, is not bad - but nothing like the top of the line models - such as the Chrysler 300's - that I rented during other vacations.

My room at the Drury Hotel is just like the one I had three years ago. It is extremely comfortable - and so far, very quiet.

I had dinner at a Chinese buffet tonight, and after ward Dwight Montgomery joined me at the local movie theatre to watch Bourn Ultimatum - good movie, by the way. We then went over to the nearby White Castle and had a few sliders with a Big Red and some Coke Zero. Like always, the burgers were delicious, but now I may be hooked on the Coke Zero. That Dwight, he is a bad influence on me - now I'm drinking sodas and I never use to do that! Oh well, I suppose it is only temporary. We'll just have to see.

I'm turning in, as I've only had a couple of hours sleep all day. I plan to get up early and have breakfast at the hotel. At noon, Dwight and I will be joining Mike Rieley for a get-together, including a visit to our old stomping grounds - the Westend. It's going to be a fun week!

Leaving for Louisville

I've got an early flight booked for my trip to Kentucky. It's good in the sense that I'll arrive there at a decent hour, but it makes for less sleep prior to the flight out of Sacramento. I'll probably try to sleep about five hours before heading to the airport - so it shouldn't be too bad. I don't anticipate that I'll get much, if any, rest on the plane. There are too many travelers and not much time between flights. Southwest is a good airline, but you don't get a lot of space to stretch out and the noise level can be high - because of the crowded conditions. However, you can't really complain about their fares - they have some of the best rates of any airline.

Great Grandbaby Update

Kristi recently provided us with another great picture of Baby Brandon. I scanned the picture and have it posted to the right - and also at the bottom of the blog. The kid is definitely photogenic.

Relaxing Day

We had an easy going and relaxing time today. I watched Tiger keep his lead in the PGA competition and afterward we cooked hamburgers on the barbecue grill. Going out to eat would have taken too much effort, so we had a nice dinner at home. Nancy will be taking a short trip while I'm in Louisville and since her car has On Star we decided to go ahead and activate the system. I have it in my car, but I'll have to give it up in a few months because the On Star vehicle must now have a digital processor, rather than an analog. The older versions are analog and cannot be converted. So, we'll just switch it to Nancy's car and she can have On Star available for her trip.

Since I'm kind of a car nut, if I see an interesting vehicle and have my camera with me, I usually take a picture. Today I saw a nice looking BMW 530i in the driveway of our neighbor's house. You can see the shot at the bottom of the blog page - impressive car!

Friday Night at the Movies

Dave, Terry and I had a good time at our monthly "Friday Night at the Movies" get-together. We watched Casino Royale. There was consensus regarding the movie. We like the new Bond and we'd watch another Bond movie if he was in it. We all ended the gathering rather tired as we discussed lots of issues and kind of wore ourselves out trying to solve world problems. Tom had a prior engagement, but plans to be at the next meeting.

Kristi's Pictures

Our granddaughter recently took some pictures of Baby Brandon and their dog Shadow. She gave Nancy a copy of the pictures and I scanned them for posting to the blog site. As you can see, the little guy has a busy schedule and needs some nap time on occasion. He's up to the task (napping) and does so without a worry in the world. And why not? His faithful watch dog, Shadow, is always nearby to make sure things are as they should be. Nice pictures, Kristi!

Good Meal at UJ's

Tom Henry and I went to Stockton today, to visit Dave Beales. We met at UJ's restaurant in Stockton. Uj's has a very large everyday menu, along with specials, and the food is not only tasty, it is reasonably priced as well. I had the Swiss steak dinner special, which included soup and salad, baked potato, ice tea and dessert - all for $10.75. That's a good deal!

After wards we went over to Dave's place and checked out his new Vista gamers PC. Dave has a new Tiger Direct PC with lots of bells and whistles -including a nifty Blue Tooth Logitech keyboard.

We enjoyed the afternoon and evening in Stockton and Tom and I got back to Elk Grove around 9:45 pm. I took a picture of Tom and Dave outside of Dave's condo. It's posted to the right - and also at the bottom of the blog page.

Barry Hits 756

It was fun to watch. You knew that the ball was gone, the moment Barry swung the bat. The setting was perfect - AT&T Park, in San Francisco. Barry Bonds made history tonight, when he hit number 756. The acknowledgment by the former home run king, Hank Aaron, was equally momentous. I guess the only down side was that the Giants lost, but we're use to that. Tonight was Barry's night - regardless of the final outcome of the game. Very exciting to watch and a tremendous accomplishment!

Rat Pack Day

I spent some time this evening checking to see if Barry would break the home run record - he didn't. Tonight I printed my final five pictures for my Rat Pack Frame that hangs in the exercise room. All of the pictures came from Yahoo and Google Images. I'll insert them in the frame tomorrow and take a picture for the blog.

Fun Day With The Grandkids and Baby Brandon

I may have noticed it before Nancy did. I said, "Our grand kids aren't fussing and fighting with one another - what's wrong"? Actually nothing was wrong. The grand kids have suddenly become mature adults - even though they are still kids. Baby Brandon is the most significant reason for this transition. There's no time for fussing and fighting when your focus is entirely on taking care of a baby. Kristi is a very good mother and Kenneth willingly helps Krisiti with anything she needs when caring for her baby. There's no back-and-forth going on - if Kristi can use some help, Kenneth is there, no questions asked. It's nice to see, as behaviorally they both have accelerated their maturation process many fold, since the birth of Baby Brandon. Brother and Sister in harmony, amazing to watch. I don't think Nancy and I ever thought we would get old enough to see that happen, but it has. As a result, Baby Brandon really does have a chance to enjoy his life and to be able to follow his dreams - whatever they may be. All with the help of a loving Mom and a supportive Uncle. As they say, "it takes a village" - along with some very caring villagers.

Barry Drives It Out of Petco

Barry Bonds made history tonight when he tied Hank Aaron's home run record at 755. Nancy and I use to pass Petco stadium on occasion when we were attending educational workshops down in San Diego. Somehow we never made it to the stadium, but now I wish we had. There are so many things to do in San Diego that it's difficult to take it all in.We'll be rooting for Barry on Monday night when the Giants play a home game. The next one will really make a splash if he can land it in the Bay! Go Barry, great stuff!

West End Picture

Those of you who check this blog from time to time, and happened to grow up in the West End of Louisville, may recognize the person in the picture to the right and at the bottom of the page. The photo goes back more than forty seven years - it was taken in January 1960, with a Kodak camera. I took the picture in front of our house on Larkwood Avenue. Let me know if you recognize this West Ender.

Dinner at Bennies

Tom and I got together this evening. It has been about a month since our last meeting.We had steak, chicken and shrimp at Bennies and afterwards we ventured over to Office Depot to check out some computer products. Office Depot has some pretty good sales from time to time and this week's newspaper ads included several instant rebates. I went there to check out some low price laptops and somehow, with a little prodding from Mr. Tom Henry, I ended up with a Sony Portable DVD writer. Go figure! I think I might actually need it - at least Tom thought so. Anyway, I'll hook it up tomorrow and give it a try. It will be good for making backup discs - and it is small enough that I can take it on trips without much hassle. I'll provide an update and a review of the DVD writer, after I burn a few discs. Oh, it also came with Nero 7, so that's a bonus.

After our visit to Home Depot Tom and I watched several of his Chengdu video clips. His Canon Pocket Camera did an excellent job, even in low light. We plan to show the clips at the September "Friday Night at the Movies" meeting.

Louisville Trip In Just A Couple Of Weeks

My trip to Louisville is coming up soon. I've talked to several of my long time friends, from the West End, and I'm hoping to get a chance to see everyone during my stay. If the humidity is high, I'll probably melt. Those of us who migrated west are ill equipped to deal with even a tinge of humidity. We call our one hundred and seven degree temperatures - a "dry" heat. That's what makes it bearable. Yeah, right! I posted a picture from one of our past Louisville gatherings. It will be interesting to do a follow up picture from this year's gathering for comparison - you know, to see if any of us has aged at all. I'm sure we will all look pretty much the same! You can see the group picture to the right of the blog page - and also at the bottom.

Flower Gardens

Our flowers haven't bloomed as well this year, as in years past. I'm not sure why. We've finally got the front yard looking fairly decent, flower wise - and now we are working on the back yard. We should have everything in pretty good shape by this weekend. Our grand kids are coming over this weekend, to lend a hand. The area that has shown the most improvement over the last few weeks is the area by our front yard lamppost. I thought it would be a good idea to shoot a picture now, as flowers can take a turn for the worse in no time flat. All it takes in the Elk Grove area is for a few hundred degree plus days to hit and things change quickly. We still have some of those temperatures to deal with, so as far as flowers go, it's a crap shoot. The lamppost picture is posted to the right - and also at the bottom of the blog page.