Alumni Weekend, Part Three

13 April 2014: Sunday meant saying goodbye and heading home, but not before our traditional lunch at the Homeplace. (Group picture to follow, maybe? I don't have one, but maybe someone else from the group does?)

Alumni Weekend, Part Two

12 April 2014: Some of my best friends, their terrific kids, and a baseball game? What could be better?

Springtime Post, especially for Amber...

Shannon beat me to it, but here we go anyway...Spring is probably my favorite time of the year--for many reasons. Chief among them, though, are the pretty flowers you see everywhere. This spring, I am mindful of poor Amber, way up in Canada. As I told her, though, spring showing up here in full-force means it's that much closer to Canada.

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been taking some pictures of the gorgeous trees and flowers and I am finally getting around to posting them. Not all of these trees were in bloom at the same time, but they do make a nice collection.


The trees in the faculty parking lots on campus.


A close up shot of one of those trees.


A lovely tree outside of Knutti, the building where my office is.


Knutti tree close up.


The awesome tree out behind my apartment, just before dusk. This tree is one of my favorite things about where I live. It was amazing to wake up and see the blooms out of my bedroom windows. And about a week later, when the petals feel down, it would look like it was gently snowing.


Close up of the apartment tree--this time facing away from the building.


Probably my favorite tree this spring--also in the faculty parking lot. To give you an idea of the time line, I took this one on Wednesday and the photos above about a week and a half ago.


Yet another close up shot.


There's this lovely (I need a new word, I know) garden out behind Knutti and all sorts of cool things have been springing up there lately, including these hyacinths. (For the record, I think hyacinths are my favorite flowers, period.)


Tulips.



Ummm...some pretty flower I don't the name of...


Daffodils...I think...

Hope you enjoyed!

The Patriots are winners after all...in Nicaragua.

My friend Amber and I used to joke/wonder what happened to all those shirts and hats teams had printed up in anticipation of wins in championships they ended up losing. For instance, I once posited, "Some little kids in Africa are going to be running around wearing NY Yankees, 2001 World Series Champions t-shirts." (That one still hurts a bit.)

Well, here's some confirmation of that theory.

We'll miss you, Joe

Joe Torre has turned down an offer to return to manage the Yankees next year. I am a bit surprised by this exact turn of events--I didn't figure he would be back, but I didn't think he'd get an offer from Steinbrenner and company at all.

I think the world of Joe Torre. He seems like an excellent guy with classic NY roots and a great work ethic. He made the Yankees the most dominant team in baseball over the twelve years he managed the team. He brought home all of those World Series titles and helped players like Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera become Yankee icons.

But I also felt it was probably time for Torre to go. Let's face it--the team needs to shake things up. I am not saying their recent lack of play-off success is Torre's fault, but when things aren't working in an organization, you've got to make some changes. Besides, isn't it best for Torre to leave now, when most Yankee fans still love him like crazy?

Now, let's flash back to some happier times: that amazing World Series victory in 1996. I clearly remember watching the deciding game at my friend Robin's apartment. I know Amber was there, and I think Heather and Allison were, too. (Amber or Heather--does that sound right?) I also remember calling a certain fella I was hopelessly in love with for most of my college career under the guise of celebrating the win. (He would always tease me about my love for the Yankees.)

And there were so many memorable moments from the season and the game: Torre's brother recovering from a heart transplant, (another brother, Rocco, had died earlier in the year), his sister the nun getting her students to pray for the Yanks to win, Jim Leyritz with big hits in key spots (I always loved him and that distinctive bat twirl before he took a swing), Wade Boggs riding a horse around the stadium. Awesome stuff.



Another great Torre-era memory for me? A drive with my dad during the 1998 series. I was home in NY for Fall Break from Roanoke and we had gone over to Tara and Jeff's house (my sister and brother-in-law) to watch the early innings of Game One against the San Diego Padres. The Yankees were down 5-2 when we decided to head back to Rocky Point. As we drove down the dark stretch of Rocky Point/Yaphank Road and listening to the game on the radio, we didn't say much--we were both bummed out about the score.

Then Chuck Knoblauch came to the plate with two runners on and hit a three-run homer. Even today, clear as day, I remember my dad slowing the car down and giving me a high-five in celebration. Yes, it sounds like a cliche, but it really was a special moment for us. (It only got better when Tino Martinez, another one of my all-time favorites, hit a grand slam in that same inning.) Honestly, for me it was a magical moment. And that's what Torre's Yankees gave to so many fans for so many years--so many amazing moments.

For so many fans, Joe Torre was the heart of the Yankees during this recent great run (and I am including recent seasons: World Series wins or not--the Yankees are a dominant team). So, I'll miss him next season, even if it is time for him and the team to move on.

Here's a nice article SI.com has reposted about that 1996 series. Check out this one, too.

UPDATE: ESPN will rebroadcast four great Torre-era games, including two that I mentioned above. You can read about them here.

Birthday Dinner

As some of you know, one of my best Greensboro friends, Rita, just moved from GSO to Bridgewater, Massachusetts, where she'll be teaching at Massasoit Community College. Rita actually moved into her new apartment on Sunday, August 5, and then drove almost two hours on Monday, August 6, to meet up with Vogel and I in Chatham. How's that for a sign of devotion from a friend? She rocks.

On Monday night, Rita and Vogel also took me to dinner to celebrate my birthday a bit early. We went to this really lovely restaurant called the Cape Sea Grille. The food was awesome and the ambiance was quite nice as well--quiet and relaxed. Everyone loved what they ordered. Rita and Vogel got seafood (salmon and bass, I think) and I got this delicious summer vegetable stew. (If I were Amber, I would have taken lots of pretty shots of the food, but I'll leave that niche to her). Afterwards, we drove back to Chatham and got ice-cream. Not a bad way to spend an evening.

Amber Sparkles!

You've got to check out Amber's blog. It's Canadian flavored! Seriously--it's worth checking out. My very good friend and former roommate has started a chronicle of her adventures living in Canada. She's a funny and smart person, so you know her blog will be a good read. Plus, she is just about the only one who comments on this blog and for that, I think she deserves some PR. Of course, she might very well be one of the only people who READS this blog, so this effort might be a bit circular...