Travel

June 26, 2022

This is fun for kids and adults alike.

A few weeks ago, we traveled to Boston and, among many other experiences, went on the Boston Tea Party tour. They’ve got a portion of the experience where you get to go on the tall ship and pretend you’re one of the rioters pushing the foul East India tea into the harbor. And all of the attendants are dressed up in their period costumes with their accents and personalities while telling you the story of that night that sparked the Revolution. At the end, you can try the several teas that were common of that day and most likely thrown into the harbor that fateful night. Lasting about an hour, I’d recommend it to anyone that loves American history!

June 12, 2022

We just spent 7 days in Seattle, Washington eating our way through the city and visiting friends. For me, it’s always good time stopping by Pike’s Market and watching large fish be chucked across the passageway. It’s especially fun when they drop a few and the crowd shames the guy with a collective, “OHHHHHHH.” All in good fun!

I had all of my favorites. For example, if you want a good English treat, I make a point to get the honey, walnut, ricotta crumpet from The Crumpet Shop. And I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed having really good seafood including the marinated chutoro at Shiro’s and the cured mackerel at Yoroshiku’s.

As for visiting the city again, I probably wouldn’t. The streets are stinky with people dealing drugs in broad daylight and you ALWAYS have to be careful of where you’re stepping. Kind of like how downhill San Francisco has gotten unfortunately. But in regards to the food, I’d have that shipped to me anytime!

April 24, 2022

Three years ago on a much less windy day, we got married here at the 16th hole of the Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course aboard Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay, HI. Normally, you’re not allowed to walk about the golf course but when I told the golf cart attendant, Bo, that this was the site of my wedding in 2019, he offered to drive me down so I could take a picture.

Realizing I wasn’t going to cause any trouble after just standing there looking at the view and taking a few pictures, he made a suggestion, “Would you like to just walk back on your own so you can stay here a bit and collect the memory?” He only cautioned that I should remain on the path to the right so I don’t interfere with the golfers. Well, I’m thankful for the time he allowed me and that I get to go back to this special place every time I touch down in Oahu.

April 12, 2022

We are in beautiful Todos Santos, a sleepy resort town of 6,485 people in Mexico’s Baja California Sur. Right below us is an estuary where all sorts of birds buzz the surface of the water and loudly flap their wings. We’ve been able to taste the local fare—some birria and cabeza tacos from Vicki & Patricio’s stand, espressos with your obligatory Topo Chico chaser, and wonderful scratch-made flan. We wind down when the sun sets and sleep shortly after. Just the kind of place to relax and get away!

March 25, 2022

After a long hunt for the perfect concealed carry weapon, Daniel settled on the Sig Sauer P365 XL. We spent over 2 hours sending 500+ rounds down range just getting used to it. The 9mm P365 XL proved itself to be accurate, light, and compact, sporting a unique Gold Titanium-Nitride barrel and trigger. It was also tons of fun to shoot.

I have not yet decided on my concealed carry. What are some compacts you’d recommend?

March 23, 2022

Daniel’s becoming quite the fly-fisherman. Casting about 40 feet into a slight breeze, he wrangled this chunky, probably 28 inch Redfish weighing about 7 – 8 pounds. Redfish are notoriously perceptive and will “spook” at the slightest movement or pressure change in the water, especially from a boat. They sometimes even detect threats from the shadows they cast. That’s why it’s important to be able to cast from a long distance away.

This was a hard fight. Though the conditions seemed perfect, it took all 8 hours of our guided tour today to land just one of these big boys. And we only spotted 3 in total. Not a day for the faint of heart, but I always say, “I don’t need to catch fish to make it fun.” I really just enjoy being on the water. What’s a chunky fish that you’ve caught before?

March 21, 2022

During college, I had the privilege of studying abroad for a year in Florence, Italy, the birthplace of the Renaissance. It was incredible to be 19 years old and have traveled to over 25 countries. We barely had any classes on Fridays, so we’d typically jump on a train or pay $0.79 (yes, it was that cheap) on RyanAir to fly to another country. Prague was definitely a highlight. I remember being floored that I could get a complete American breakfast for the equivalent of $2.00! And then I could walk a couple steps to the Old Town Square and have a full suit of armor custom made just for me! One can only dream.

Several of my classmates had the same idea of visiting Prague, only the discount airline they booked had gone bankrupt while they were roaming about the city! Unfortunately, they weren’t prepared for the cold winter weather and couldn’t find a flight out the same night. Instead of freezing at the terminal, in desperation, they all huddled together in the men’s bathroom and sat under the hand dryer, taking turns pressing the button when the loud, hot air stopped blowing out. Pitiful and wonderful all at the same time.

In another instance, I remember being so sleepy and hungry on an overnight train. But the only thing we had to eat were chocolate covered coffee beans. So it was either stay hungry and go to sleep, or eat the beans and stay awake! Life is full of these ridiculous conundrums.

After my year abroad and getting a job, I explained to one of my co-workers how much debt I was in from college (now all paid off – phew!). But I also talked about how amazing it was to be in Florence, speaking Italian and meeting Italians, going to soccer games where the crowds literally shouted, “Ucciderlo!” (“Kill him!”) to the other team (yeesh!). She smiled knowingly and said “If you had to do it all over again, it should be no different.”

When you’re young, people expect you to do these types of things–being unprepared, hanging out under a hand dryer for warmth, or only packing chocolate covered coffee beans to eat on long trips. It’s laughable and you get a pass. “BUT,” she said, looking all-of-a-sudden solemn and grim, “people will never give you any sort of break for entering adulthood and THEN deciding you don’t like it all that much, and instead, embarking on debt-financed trip around the globe.” For a young student, it’s cute; for an adult, it’s grossly irresponsible.

Turns out, she regretted being so logical in her youth, passing on adventure because of how much it cost. I tried to structure my life so I never had to do that.