Another milestone has come and gone. If I can somehow manage to remain among the living for another 3 years and 4 months, I will be able to say I lived in NINE decades. Now that’s a milestone! And a sign that I probably can’t throw a 50-yard pass anymore!
The Build-up to the Big Day . . .
August 24
[OK, it was time to cover the Super’s gardens . . . because it’s necessary to the peace and tranquility of the household.]
[And at no extra charge, Noonan Park gardens.]
[And then it was time for another Class of ’65 luncheon, returning to Bug-A-Boo. When Barb arrived we all knew why nobody wanted to follow her speech at the 50th reunion last year.]
August 26
[Anthony’s at the winery w/ Frontenac grapes growing on the pergola (over the seating area).]
August 27
[I picked up old high school classmate Brad for a 5-team football scrimmage at AAHS. Our Cardinals are projected to be very good – and certainly exciting. The Cards (in white) were very impressive. And I got to spend the two hours visiting with Wayne Elton, our senior class’s principal.]
[And then back to the winery for Harper’s Chord (oh, you can see that hanging in the background) – that’s Dave, Jill, Micah, and Roger.]
[There are 4 videos herein. I took 10 (they’re all on YouTube) because I needed updates with the new members, Dave and Micah.]
August 28
[Josie]
August 30
[Danny with Big Ole, the Vikings, and DMac (Voice of the Alexandria Cardinals)!]
[It happened on this day – at exactly 3:17 PM. That moment of perfect weather! It was so nice it made one feel privileged to have survived to almost 69! This summer will go down as one of the all-time greats, anywhere on the planet . . . (p.s. Dr. Mark Sealey subsequently reported from the state fair that this is the 4th hottest summer in Minnesota history and the 8th wettest – Alex somehow managed to avoid the bad parts of that!)]
They tell you that you’ll lose your mind when you grow older. What they don’t tell you is that you won’t miss it very much. ~ By Malcolm Cowley
The Journey Begins
Thanks for joining me! This is the follow-up to the original, “alexandriacardinals.wordpress.com,” which overwhelmed the system’s ability to handle it any more. Thus, this is “Part 2.” As the original was initially described:
10-26-07-4
“It all began in a 5,000 watt radio station in Fresno, California” . . . wait a minute, that was Ted Baxter on the Mary Tyler Moore Show! Let’s see . . . oh yeah, it all began in 2003 when retirees, i.e., old people, in Alexandria, Minnesota, who had no desire to become snow birds, went looking for mid-winter entertainment here in the frozen tundra of West Central Minnesota. We discovered girls’ high school hockey, fell in love immediately, and it remains our favorite spectator sport to this day. Initially, and for several years, reports on these games were e-mailed to those who were actually snowbirds but wanted to keep abreast of things “back home.” It was ultimately decided a blog would be more efficient, and it evolved into a personal diary of many things that attracts tens of readers on occasion. It remains a source of personal mental therapy and has yet to elicit any lawsuits.
~ The Editor, May 9, 2014
p.s. The photo border around the blog is the Cardinal girls’ hockey team after just beating Breck for the state championship in 2008. It’s of the all-tournament team. The visible Breck player on the left is Milica McMillen, then an 8th-grader – she is now an All-American for the Gophers. The Roseau player in the stocking cap I believe is Mary Loken, who went on to play for UND; and the Cardinal player on the right, No. 3, is Abby Williams, the player we blame most for making us girls’ hockey fans who went on to play for Bemidji State.
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Photos contained herein are available for personal use. All you have to do is double click on any of the photos and they will become full screen size. You can then save them into your personal “My Pictures” file. They make lovely parting or hostess gifts, or holiday gifts for such as Uncle Ernie who wants to see how his grand niece is doing on the hockey team. If any are sold for personal profit, however, to, for example, the Audubon Society, National Geographic, Sven’s Home Workshop Monthly, Curling By The Numbers, or the World Wrestling Federation, I only request that you make a donation to the charitable organization of your choice. You have two hours and fifteen minutes. Pencils ready? Begin!
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alexandriacardinals 