Park City, Utah

I just returned from our annual ski trip which we usually take the week between Christmas and New Year's, this year however, we went the week before Christmas.  We returned to Park City Utah where we visited three years ago.  We even stayed at the same resort, Hotel Park City.  The HPC is a five star resort and we stayed in the same cottage (#5) which has a perfect view of the ski runs and lake.  The cottages are separate from the hotel and are away from all the noise of the hotel.  Each cottage has (3) fireplaces, one which is on the patio next to the private hot tub.  The cottages all have leather furnishings, flat panel LCD's, wireless Internet and a small kitchen for light meals.  It's convenient to Park City Mountain Resort, Deer Valley and Canyons.  Downtown Park City is 5 miles away.  They also have one of the best spa's I've every been in.  80 minute deep tissue massage after 4 days of skiing and boarding never felt so good.  This property also has a Ruth Chris steak house on site and a free daily skiers buffet for breakfast.

We did a combo this year, 2 days snowboarding and 2 days skiing.  We also opted to fly into Salt Lake City instead of the usual drive in from California.  The flight was only 1 1/2 hours and the drive to Park City was 30 minutes.  I can't get to Big Bear that fast.  Flying made sense since I paid for the tickets with my AMEX and Delta Sky Miles points (the best deal in the world for frequent flyer's). 

Other destinations we considered this year included: Whistler, Mammoth, and Vail.  We did mammoth the last two years and were really looking for a new spot we haven't visited but after calculating the cost to fly, time on the mountain, and value for the money, Park City topped the list.

As a side trip, we took a 2 hour detour to Olympic Park, site of the 2002 Olympics for ski jumping, bobsled, skeleton, and free style jumps.  They have a great museum on the site featuring the history of skiing, local ski areas and of course the Olympics of 2002 where the US finished 2nd overall.  My real intention for going was to have a ride on the bobsled's.  For $200 you can ride the actual bobsled down the track that those crazy Jamaicans flew down in the Olympics.  Unfortunately, they were working on the ice so we didn't get our ride.

For info on The Hotel Park City see http://www.hotelparkcity.com/
For info on the Park City Olympic Park see http://www.utah.com/parkcity/olympic_park.htm

We had a great time as usual, I really like Park City because it has a lot of character from the early 1800's and since the winter Olympics, they have made a significant investment into the infrastructure of the town so it's very top notch as a ski destination.

The snow in Park City is very dry due to the fact that the moister picked up from nearby Salt Lake creates a much fluffier power then anywhere else I've skied.  What this means it that the precipitation to snow yield is about 8x's the average resort destination so they always are pretty reliable for good conditions.

Here are some pictures from our trip.

This is the view from our porch, Hotel Park City

The Old Barn on the road to Park City

I'm ready to snowboard

Brooke and Brad prepare to take off

Brooke and Bradley getting along outside our cottage

Betsy and I outside our cottage

Deer Valley is probably the nicest ski resort I've been to, they have bathrooms that look like a hotel.

Mountain Bike Riding in Whiting Ranch

I live on the edge of the Cleveland National forest in South Orange County.  It's not much of a forest but it does have extensive mountain bike trails running throughout the hills of my neighborhood.  I'm fairly new to mountain biking, but I enjoy it over other forms of cardio exercise.

Last July, 2010, I purchased my real mountain bike (not the Huffy version but a real mountain grade bike).  Now I've been riding a bike since I was a kid and I like to think I have normal balance and basic bike riding skills, however, now that I am in my 40's now I know that my mind and body don't always agree on our collective capabilities.  Although I was pretty good at making bike ramps and jumping the neighborhood kids when I was 11, I have lost a little of my Evil Kenevil edge, case in point.

My first outing with the new bike was with some of my friends in the neighborhood, who have been riding for a while.  I was confident I could keep up and go to all the places they were taking me, after all I've been riding a bike since I was 5.  Well, my first outing resulted in a classic over then handle bar, pile drive, right on my shoulder.  That's right, day one on the mountain. 

Apparently, the speed of a downhill rider, going too fast, and who apply's too much brake to the front wheel without properly shifting his weight to the back of the bike, results in a gravitational pull over the handlebars.  If said rider also stays clipped to his pedals by his new fancy biking shoes he then goes over the hadlebars and the bike stays attached. 

I had a 5th degree shoulder separation that apparently was not treatable with ice and/or Ben Gay.  After surgery, physical therapy and lot of weight lifting with 5lb pink dumb bells, I am back on the bike!

This is my repared sholder, a small pin and pully system holds it back together!  Does this picture make me look too thin?

I've been slowly getting back into the bike riding and gradually going further with each outing.  I have not fallen again but. I fully expect I will.  I just hope it doesn't hurt as much as last time.

I wanted to share a video I took while mountain biking this week which really explains why I enjoy it.  While riding I encountered a family of deer.  To most people, this isn't a big deal but in south OC, urban development has nearly made the site of a deer, non-existent. 

I can ride my bike less then a mile and I feel about as far from the urban city as you can.  In addtion to deer, I've see the usual rabbits and squirels (who no doubt enjoy playing chicken with the bike riders) but also coyote and once a mountain lion (not all animals are a welcom site).  I made this video especially corny and it's ok if you get teary eyed at the site of a deer or my poor iphone photography skills.

Here is the link to the video..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIr9_Oy0lQ4

Plugged up

So we've been having some issues with the toilets in my house, they constantly get plugged. This is an annoyance for all in the family but it is pretty embarrassing for our guests. After evaluating the situation, the problem stems from new tile which after installed raised the height of the throne beyond the required distance needed for it to be properly attached to the flange.

So,in addition to fixing the problem, I also decided to purchase three new thrones that are low flow and give this important room an updated look.

I noticed that after the Plummer left, one of the installed toilets has prevented the door from being closed. I'm not sure why the Plummer didn't dry fit this first to make sure the door would close. Maybe he thought we are one of those families who have an open door policy when we do our business, but I can assure you that we are not. I can also assure you that the situation is not acceptable to my son and daughter who share this particular bathroom. They don't even like to share the bathroom as it is but open doors, that just won't fly.

The toilet situation will be resolved by weeks end. It just goes to show that my projects never seem to go as planned.

I never understood the mosh pit.

Just landed in Dallas and it's hot, humid and hot. I've been here a few times this year and it's always the same ( hot and humid).

A Day at the Orange County Fair

It's that time of the year once again, it descends on Orange County every July and threatens to drain your wallet of all its contents, the OC Fair is in town.  Our family is somewhat divided on the fair, there are things we like and dislike.  The likes? Junk Food, Rides, more Junk Food.... The dislikes, it's crowded, the parking is terrible, the traffic in or out is unbelievable and it's expen$ive.

This year, my wife Betsy was on a work trip and already expressed her desire not to go this year so on impulse I decided to take Brad and Brooke in the middle of the week (which I thought would be a "light" day as opposed to the weekend).  This particular day you could also get in to the fair free by bringing 5 cans of food for the local food shelter (help the shelters restock the food shelves and free admission to the fair, I am winning already).

After the 15 minute drive to the fair grounds, followed by endless circling and rerouting through Costa Mesa's road cone maze and fair parking lot, we finally arrived after 1 1/2 hours (yes :15 minutes to get to the fair grounds and :75 to enter the parking lot and exit the car). 

Searching for a parking spot!

We did get in free although, any thought of Wednesday being a "light" day was a joke.  Apparently everyone in Orange County prefers to pay for the fair addmission in canned goods as opposed to real currency.

Once in the fair, Brad, Brooke and I took care of the first order of business, testing the fried foods.  We started with:
1. Fried Kool Aid
2. Fried Twinkies
3. Fried Oreos



Fried Twinkies and Oreos...mmmmm.





The experts test the fried goodness

 After trying all three, I have to say that Fried Kool Aid is not the best thing I've tried, however, a fried Twinkie is pretty good followed by a close second, the fried Oreo.

In an effort to "pace" ourselves and not eat or spend ourselves to death, we decided to check out a few fair exhibits.  Brooke wanted to see the decorated cakes (she's obsessed with Cake Boss on TV). Impressive was the cake that looked like a hamburger and one that also looked like a house (apparently a good cake should look like anything but a cake).

We also stopped by the photography and visual arts exhibit.  I always enjoy this.  I found the picture below very moving. Obviously it portrays a view from inside one of the twin towers on 911, where employees are starting what would seem like another normal day at work.  We should never forget 911.

Next we ventured off to the carnival zone to see how far 100 ride tickets can go.  I advise those with real interest in carnival rides to purchase the unlimited ride pass.  100 tickets (for $50) doesn't go very far these days.

Most rides (the good ones) are about 10 tickets each, so with three people do the math.

We did ride the zipper which while is fun, seems to try and extract more money from your pockets while flipping you upside down in circles.  You can hear the change falling from everyones pockets.  I had to decide what I wanted to save, my phone, and sunglasses or my spare change. The zipper received all my spare change (I managed to keep the car keys though).

We did ride this swing thing, which didn't try to steal any remaining change and provided a nice view of the fair and orange county coastline.

Now one thing Betsy does like about the fair, is the abnormally large horse and steer. 

On our way to visit the Giant Steer, we stumbled on this years newest addition, the giant Alligator (sorry no pictures allowed).  Yes, it's big too.  Betsy would have approved.

We bumped into some friends who were also at the fair to see Chris Issacs play so we joined forces for some addtional rides.

Brooke and Jennifer

Katie and Bradley

One of the funniest things we enjoyed watching this year was Brooke playing in the human Hamster Ball.  This is a large ball that floats on a bed of water.  It's quite amusing to watch, see for yourself.



Brooke, the Human Hamster

The other surprising thing was the Aeorsmith tribute band which we watched for over an hour.  These guys were pretty good, they even looked like Aerosmith.  Check it out...-> actually sounds like "Love in an Elevator" right?

All and all, this year's trip to the fair was pretty fun.  In addition to the fried foods we tried earlier, we also consumed some chocolate covered bacon, cinnamon rolls, a few international beers (just dad), and some tasty barbecue.  Yes we all felt sick by the time we got home and yes I will be in trouble with Betsy after she reads all the stuff the kids and I ate.

Yes, I know better.....

I won't do it again (that's a lie)

:)



My daughters high school cheer season starts today. They've been at cheer camp this week and today is their first performance as a team. Let's go Chargers.

Costa Rica Trip Re-Cap

Well I've returned from our 10 day trip to Costa Rica and had an incredible time.  I'd love to tell you everything we did in one post but it would be too much for anyone to absorb in one sitting so I will just summarize each day and provide the high level overview and links to places we visited.
The worst part of this vacation is the travel, our flight left at 1:40 AM from LA and arrived in Costa Rica about 9:00 AM (we had an hour layover in El Salvador).  Although the departure time was late/early it did result in a full, first day in Costa Rica.

Here is a break down of what we did each day, I will provide more later:
Friday, June 24-
Depart LAX to San Juan Costa Rica- Check into The Springs Resort near the foot of Arenal Volcano.  This is a beautiful resort and I have to say that of all the hotels I've stayed at, this property ranks among the top one or two.  It was used as the site for filming ABC's the Bachelor.  Every room has a clear, unobstructed view of the Arenal Volcano.  The prooperty has over 40 hot pools of different temps, a small zoo that has monkeys, puma's and other wild cats.  A river which  outlines the property and can be used for swimming, rafting or kayaking and rooms that are over the top beautiful.  We had a two story villa with 2 master suites, each with their own balcony and 2 hammocks overlooking the jungle.

Yes, the view is that good in person!

Saturday, June 25-
Today was very active.  We went zip lining waterfall rappelling and horseback riding near the Arenal Volcano, this was a blast!  The longest zipline of about 12 lines is 1/2 a mile and is the second longest in Costa Rica, you can see several waterfalls and rivers below.  This was a great combo tour put together by Arenal Mundo Aventura's.  I will warn you though, once you rappel down the face of the waterfall you have to climb a 200ft ladder back up to the top, this is not for everyone but sometimes it takes a little work to see something incredible.



The 1/2 Mile Zip Line



Sunday, June 26-
Today was a full day at The Springs Resort which included lounging by the resorts river, visiting the monkey's and pumas, and testing the water in some of the over 40 thermal pools around the resort which are heated by the volcano.  At the river, Brooke and I decided to do some tubing in preparation for white water rafting later in the week.

Monday, June 27-
We departed the Arenal Volcano area today for our condo, located in the Central Pacific coast  resort area known as Los Suenos.  Los Suenos is a large resort area which is anchored by the Marriott.  The 3 hour drive passed through several micro climates and included stops for locally grown coffee and to observe the Crocs that sit at the banks of the rivers.

Check out the Croc's in the video, they are everywhere!

Tuesday, June 28-
This was mostly a "chill" day at the resort, getting used to the property, hanging out at the pool and driving the golf cart to and from the marina, pool, and restaurants.

Wednesday, June 29-
We ventured south along the coast to Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica's national park and home to Sloths, Howler Monkeys, White Face Monkeys, Reptiles, Bats, Snakes, Frogs and much more.  This is a remarkable park and you are guaranteed to see a lot of wildlife.  Manuel Antonio also has beautiful beaches and lots of lush jungle.  We also had lunch at a restaurant called El Avion that is built from the wreckage of an old Contra airplane which crashed in the 80's (remember that whole Oliver North fiasco?)

Thursday, June 30-
Today we went river rafting on the Sevegre River with a company called Amigos Del Rio, near Manuel Antonio.  This was probably my favorite day.  Rafting was about 4 hours with stops at some beautiful waterfalls and a great lunch on the banks of the river.  I am happy to say we only tipped our raft over twice (which was two more times than everyone else, but hey, we were pushing the limits).

Friday, July 1-
Today we took a trip to Tortuga Island (Turtle Island) with Calypso Cruises.  This was another great day.  Our boat (with on deck pools) sailed over to the Tortuga Island where we spent the day snorkeling, horseback riding, lounging on the beach and riding the banana boats.  Lots to see on the island: flamingo's, crocs, boar, turtles and more.  Although my daughter Brooke and I swam through a group of jelly fish, it didn’t' slow us down for long.

Bradley with the Island's Pig mascot

Saturday, July 2
We spent Saturday with our trusty driver, Giovani who took us to the Poa's Volcano to get a better look inside the crater.  We arrived about 20 minutes before cloud cover completely hid the crater for the remainder of the day.  We also had a great lunch of terrific Costa Rican food (this is where knowing a local really helps).  It was one of the best meals and cheapest.  From here we visited the Peace Lodge and Waterfalls for someone one one time with the animals.  We handled Toucans, butterflies, monkeys, sloths and more.  On our way back to Los Suenos, we stopped to look at some furniture and buy souvenirs.  The day ended with a great diner at a local Costa Rican favorite.

Betsy and Tucan Sam (I wanted to take this bird home)

Sunday, July 3-
We spent Sunday chilling back in the resort area at Los Suenos enjoying our pool time and the great weather.  Our timing for all activities was perfect.  For dinner and a great view of the sunset, we went to Villa Caletas which sits high on a cliff overlooking the pacific ocean.

Sunset at Villa Caletas

Monday, July 4-
Happy 4th of July for most Americans but we are heading home today.  However, after working on my wife the entire week, my son and I finally convinced her to let us stop on the way to the airport and do a little "buggy jumping".  Now, when I say bungy jumping, I am talking about a jump off a 300 ft high bridge.  Bradley (my son went first) then me.  They actually added a bigger buggy for me to make sure my weight didn't carry me 350'.  It was a blast.  You can see my jump by clicking the linke below.   There are a couple of bungy companies on the Old Colorado bridge 15 minutes from San Jose airport, but I recommend Xtreme Waves Bungy.  They provide the latest equipment, a video of your jump and a T-Shirt.  Everyone if very professional and this is a safe activity (it just feels crazy)

Our travel home was slow....TACA airlines in Costa Rica processes passengers  very slowly so arrive early....we stood in line to check luggage for 1 1/2 hours, departed an hour late and almost missed our connection home in El Salvador.  As I started this post.....the low points were getting to Costa Rica and returning home but everything in between was a blast!

Reading on the go- Books vs. eReader's

I love books and since I travel a lot on the plane, they help pass the time.  Reading is challenging for me when I am not traveling because there are so many distractions, but sitting on a long flight, I can usually knock out 1-2 books per trip. 

I'm also a fan of hardback books, I like the size, the feel, the book jacket, how they look on my book shelf but what I don't like is lugging them around in my backpack or carry-on.  As a frequent traveler, you have to always ask "what's in your backpack"  (ever see "Up in the Air" with George Clooney?).  Well, I carry a lot of work related equipment, laptop, scanner, mouse, iphone, itouch, usually some work files and my books (one maybe two depending on the duration of the trip). 

When traveling, one can't help but notice the shinny new devices everyone is carrying with them, not phones or laptops but something in-between.  They have different names: Nook, Kindle, and of course Ipad.  People are reading books on them, they are light and thin, they have a back light and some do other things like display emails and other documents.

I started to consider if I was ready to make the switch from the hardback books I love to a new eReader?

Remember these.....

I used to enjoy looking at these too, they're called CD's and I had several hundred of them.  They had jackets with lyrics on them and maybe a few pictures of the band.  I don't take these on trips with me anymore, in fact, I haven't used one in years, instead I take one of these, my ipod/itouch.  This little device holds over 3000 songs, my iphone holds about 5000 songs.  That is equal to about 400-500 CD's, so I've learned that its easier to enjoy my entire music collection on one small device.

Now, here is what my bookshelf looks like.... The books do take up a lot of room and unlike the CD's, I seldom read the same book twice, except the Bible and perhaps William Buffet's biography.

So I finally broke down and purchased the iPad and downloaded my first book.  The Ipad also has a "book shelf" so I can have that warm fuzzy feeling I  get when I look at all my previously read books, but as you can see, next to my current bookshelf, it's considerably smaller.



When I compare the size of my typical book to my new iPad,  it is significantly smaller and not only holds one book but my entire collection of books, just like my itouch.

It  looks like a book when your reading it, even replaces my paperclip book mark with a red book marker.

So how do I like it?  I love it, I will say that it is not as easy to read outside due to the screen glare (The Kindle and Nook do better in sun) however; I was drawn to the additional features of the ipad and willing to compromise on glare.  I am also a little nervous about taking an iPad to the beach because I don't want to get sand in the little cracks (even we don't like that).  So for now, I will probably keep a hardback on hand for "beach reading" but the ipad is my go to device for all other reading (80% of the time).

I know this technology is not new to anyone but it is interesting how we've migrated old things into new technologies. 

Oh did I mention I can throw all my DVD's away now because they can also be stored on my iPad? 

3D Puzzle Obsession-

I have a new obsession which I admit is getting out of hand.  I am obsessed with recreating puzzles of places I've visited.  Let me first say, these are not just boring puzzles 2d puzzles but 3D puzzles, some that range in size to a few inches to several feet in height. 

Some of you may have remembered these 3D puzzles from several years ago manufactured by a company called Wrebbit.  Well the company has long since gone out of business (probably a result of kids migrating from board games and boring toy's we played with to Xbox and Playstation's).

I stumbled onto this hobby when looking for a model of Chateau Chenonceau, located in the Loire Valley in France.  While visiting the Chateau, I saw a model of it in the gift shop but could not figure out how to transport it back to the US. so when I returned home,  I started to google "chateau model" and found "chateau puzzle".  I was excited to find a 3D puzzle of the chateau but wasn't excited about putting an 800 pc puzzle together.Since I couldn't find the model I was looking for, I had to settle for the puzzle.

As you can see, the similarity between the puzzle and the actual chateau is pretty accurate, I couldn't detect any variance at all.  The puzzle is made of foam pieces and is pretty sturdy so it still sits on my desk as a reminder of a wonderful vacation.

After completing this 1st puzzle I began to search Ebay for other locations we visited and was surprised to find numerous 3D puzzle options!  The challenge I've found is that since they don't make these puzzles anymore, there is a subculture of other puzzle nuts out there who are buying and selling these things and finding a good puzzle at the right price is not easy.  For example a recent post on Ebay for the New York skyline runs for $600 (I got mine for $90), it's seems expensive for a puzzle I know but it's over 3000 pcs and includes the twin towers (manufactured pre- 911).

The next puzzle I purchased was the Notre Dame Cathedral (keeping with the French theme).  It was bigger and much more difficult then the Chateau but was again, a very accurate model of the original structure.

I am thinking of having my family recreated as 3D puzzles so I can insert them in all the scenes, just a thought now but stay tuned.

The Notre Dame puzzle had to be disassembled due to it's size and the fact that my wife Betsy doesn't want 3D puzzles all over the house (she is still not that happy with my collection of sports memorabilia hanging all over the bonus room).  Taking one of these apart is almost as difficult as putting them together.  When you are looking for a piece to complete a section and you've done so for a long time, it seems so wrong to dismember it.... so I take a picture to "remember" what was "dis-membered". 

My latest puzzle was a lot of fun since it was constructed vertically, the Eiffel Tower is the tallest puzzle that I 've built so far.  I finished it in about 3 days which my family will tell you was three days that I didn't speak to anyone (not true), although I do get pretty focused on finishing these once I start.

The New York skyline may be my next puzzle, however, at 3,141 pieces, I think I may need a lot of down time to finish it since it alone is bigger then the other three puzzles combined.  I mean just look at this thing!

By far the most challenging puzzles they ever made.  Not sure if I will tackle this one next or move on to something else but I thought I would share this new hobby of mine.  It's fun to recreate these puzzles when you've visited (or want to visit) these places.  I can still remember walking through the actual sites and for a minute, building these takes me back there.

Other potential candidates:

• Tower Bridge
• Big Ben
• The Capitol
• The White House
• Empire State Building
• Champs Elysees

Oh the list keeps going on!

New edition below, finished 8/16/2011, Neuschwanstein Castle.  1000 pc's.

9/16/2011

Well I put it off long enough but as 9/11/2011 approached, I thought it would be a nice tribute to the 911 victims to finally build this large and challenging puzzle. My goal was to complete this puzzle by 9/11/11.  To be honest, it took a little longer.  This puzzle was 3,141 pieces and extremely difficult. 

911 had a profound day in everyone's life, for our family, it's my son Bradley's birthday and on the day he turned 8 years old. I had been traveling for work in San Francisco, when I called that morning to wish him a happy birthday, the day was overshadowed by the horror of what we all watched on TV.

It makes me a little sad to think that my son's birthday will always be tied to such a horrible day 8 years later but I tell him to think of what a blessing life is, on a day he turns a year older, that for many, it was taken away in an instant.  That he should live his life to the fullest in honor of those who had it suddenly taken away.

As we all know, the airports were closed on 9/11 and my flights from San Francisco to home were cancelled.  On the long drive home in a rented car, I didn't know what would be next for our country, I was sad that I missed my son's birthday, sad that so many had died in a building that I once stood on top of, and most of all sad for all the misery the day caused.

Every year on 9/11,  I watch the events retold on TV news shows, I'm not sure why I watch these repeats, maybe I just think that we should never forget what our fellow American's went through and suffered for, maybe it’s a way to remember the hero’s who ran into a place most would run out of.  It's just my way of remembering.

I had several fits of anger putting this puzzle together, disassembling major sections once I realized I'd made a mistake.   I spent hours of just staring at pieces with no conceivable location to put them and then wondering where other pieces I should have, disappeared to. 

Unlike some of my other puzzles of places I've enjoyed visiting (Effie Tower, Chateau's, etc), this one was like having a dark cloud in the room and I didn't enjoy looking at it for days after like the others.  I may remove the towers and buildings around ground zero first, before taking the rest down.  I typically put my puzzles back on ebay after I complete them and I hope the next person who buys this puzzle will appreciate it for more than just a puzzle, it’s a time in history that is lost, but not forgotten.

11/13/2011

Just added a new puzzle to the completed list, this one is Paris in the 1800's a simple one tht was about 800 pieces.  I should have left the other Paris puzzles together so I could have a whole complete city.