alexandriacardinals

December 29

Tournament participants:  Alexandria, Buffalo, Hutchinson, and Robbinsdale Armstrong.

[In the first game, Hutch held off Buffalo in a close one.  Then the crowd settled in for our Cards against Armstrong.  Grandparents of note are sitting in front of the starting center on our last state tournament team.]

[Hello, maintenance?  We need a new or repaired net on the south end.  Thank you.]

[The pre-game team chit-chat followed by Kayla (43) winning the opening tip.]

[Ooops, a Falcon attempts to set a pic on Kayla – probably not a good idea.]

[Macy (11) brings the ball up court.]

[And Emma Ziegler (1), Zig, attempts a 3.]

[The amazing Mr. Ripley is there for professional coverage.]

[Kayla getting offensive position in the post.  Every once in a while I luck into a pretty good shot.]

[A basketball . . . heading for its ultimate destination.]

[OK, the first half was not pretty.  In fact, it was a struggle.  We have played enough games now to realize this is a team that is not going to score a lot of points.  But our defense should help keep us in most games – and this was one of those.]

[Macy on the point of defense – we have several players who can play that position very well.  Young freshman McKenzie Duwenhoegger (35 – behind Macy) is getting more comfortable each game and will be a player.]

[Zig on the defensive point – with her length, she deflects a lot of passes.]

[The defense disrupts . . . ]

[Macy chases down her deflection.]

[Mr. Ripley appears to have spotted Kim Kardashian . . . ]

[That must be it, because Macy is making a play underneath.]

[Meanwhile, play goes on under the basket . . . ]

[A highlight!  Our 3-point shooting percentage this year is in need of resuscitation, but here Macy launches one from the corner . . . and that’s it swishing through the net!]

[Kelby (13) is a defensive wreaker of havoc and getting more and more PT.]

[What is it?  I’ve never seen anything like that before?]

[No, it’s mine – give it to me!]

[Zig on a drive.]

[And it’s over.  Raggedy game with 50 turnovers by both teams.  But we found out how good our defense was on this night when Armstrong easily penetrated Buffalo’s defense all through the next night’s game.]

December 30

[The next night against Hutchinson – just like last year’s tourney.]

[Random shots during warm-up . . . Kayla . . .]

[Kiyana (21) . . . ]

[Emma Schmidt (25), hasn’t played since the first game I went to this year – foot issues, I believe.  I saw her dad after the game and he said she will play in the first game after the holidays.  She will be a big plus.]

[Macy and Emma . . . ]

[Sarah Frederick (5) . . . ]

[Kara Thomson (23), our designated 3-point shooter . . .]

[Kendall (3) and Kelby . . . ]

[Kara . . . ]

[Do the parties of the first part accept these conditions?]

[Do the parties of the second part have a rebuttal? ]

[Now here’s the plan . . . ]

[Try to get off a shot with each offensive possession.  That may be a scout for the Lynx in the stands!]

[And I believe Kayla won this tip too.]

[Kendall and McKenzie sitting a double pic for Zig.]

[My other good shot from tourney.  Kendall setting for a move on the Tigers’ No. 3, also a very good player.]

[And Kendall with a defensive move from her soccer background.]

[Kelby on the back court press . . . ]

[And chasing them into the front court.]

[And shooting a free throw.]

[Again, we played great 1st half defense.  But our inability to score was becoming deflating.  We should have had a nice lead at the half, but we missed I believe all but one open 3, missed uncontested lay-ups, and to the point it was affecting our usually pretty good free throw shooting.]

[In the 2nd half, McKenzie under tough in-your-face defense from the Tigers . . . ]

[Their No. 3 buried a 3 from the corner as the game wound down.  A further indication of 2nd half play.  The Tigers made a decent percentage of their 3’s while we did not, their pressure defense just like last year wore us down.  We weren’t as quick as earlier and couldn’t create turnovers. They were again the stronger, more physical and aggressive team and won 50 – 39.  Some times you just have to tip your cap.]

I haven’t been able to slam-dunk the basketball for the past five years.  Or, for the thirty-eight years before that, either.  ~  Dave Barry

Up next:  Back to Hawaii.

For the Super, it’s all about going to the beach . . .

November 29

[Ever been peed on by a moth? Enjoying a lie down on Roy’s swing chair this morning when I felt water hit my leg. Since the swing has a canopy, I wondered where it came from? Look at the upper left hand side – a moth as big as a Buick! At first I thought it was a bat!  On a lighter note, Roy bought a Google Chromecast yesterday. The three of us spent a couple of hours trying to get it to work this morning. Finally, the Super called Grandson Tom at Purdue and he had us up and running in a couple of minutes! When are they going to make this stuff “senior user friendly”?????  Oh, the Super got the gecko photo!]

[Say, would you bring me something cool in a glass – and then massage my feet?]

[After a long day circling the island, a day for sticking close to home . . . and visiting Roy’s nearby beach.]

[Roy grew up in Edinburg, Texas, about 20 miles from Mexico, and went to Pan American University there.  His hat reflects his cultural heritage – half Texican, half Mexican.  His German heritage is reflected in his ability to grill brats.]

[The beach is called White Sands or Magic Sands.  There’s also a third name I’ve forgotten.]

[Hey, how ’bout lunch at Sam Choy’s – great views!]

[Roy held some sort of sea creature in his tongs; the Super took a couple of photos below.]

[Then, back home for dinner?  See, I can’t be held solely responsible for my current girth.]

[Sunset!]

[Too much leg?]

[Too much schmaltz?]

[Too much botany?]

Hey, people who travel with their bed pillow. You look insane.  ~  Jim Gaffigan

Up next:  Girls’ basketball tournament.

Big Island Circumnavigation

As the days dwindle down to a precious few . . . I think, isn’t ‘dwindle’ kind of a funny sounding word?

November 28:  Hey, how ’bout a 13-hour, 280-mile day trip around the Big Island? Beginning with daybreak on Roy’s backyard patio in Kona, a rainbow (seen many, now know why it’s the University of Hawaii nickname) at the Parker Ranch (the biggest ranch in the country) at the north end of the island, the Super driving us in Hilo, fine Thai dining (just for “Weakie”) in Hilo, and Go Hilo High Vikings!!

[We began as always with coffee in Roy’s backyard.]

[Then in the 3rd photo down, I got ‘im/’er:  Of Roy’s menagerie of wild “pets,” including a family of geckos, a giant moth, and an almost equally giant spider that guarded his garage door, my favorite was a dragonfly. You can see him/her slightly NE of the center (where the sky is background) of the backyard photo. Early in the morning I’d be out on the swing. The dragonfly would fly back and forth from Roy’s pond to about 10 feet in front of me, hovering and looking directly at me. My thinking was he/she wanted me to turn on the waterfall, which would come on automatically at 9:00 (as I recall). Cool . . . maybe I’m to dragonflies what Harry Potter is to snakes? ]

[This was the day the Super (yes, the Super) would drive us all the way around the island.  We drove north, where for miles to our right and in front of us was Mauna Kea.  Mauna Kea is distinguished from the other big mountain, Mauna Loa, by the observatories on its peak.]

[I guess this means we were leaving Kona.]

[Then we drove over there . . . drat, someone must have beaten us to the pot o’ gold!]

[Where we were in relation to stuff.  No pot o’ gold here either?  I’m beginning to think that’s just an old fairy tale?]

[How else do you take a picture of the country’s largest ranch?  Didn’t buy anything there – not a fan of ranch dressing.]

[Ruthie parking on the waterfront in Hilo – almost directly on the other side of the island from our start in Kailua.  Roy enjoys a little fine Thai dining on the strip.]

[The Hilo waterfront.  Hilo is on the east, or wet, side of island – Roy lives in the desert West.]

[Then we drove inland a bit, past the home of the Vikings, to . . .]

[Here!]

[And three from the Super.]

[And now good-bye to our Vikings!]

[Then on the way out of town . . . ]

[To here . . . ]

[We would be back to this overlook after sunset . . . ]

[But before we leave, a few more glimpses around the lunar landscape.]

[Stopping for a few “smokers” on the way back to . . .  ]

[The lodge and . . . ]

[The observatories on Mauna Kea (nope, didn’t go up there), and then on the way the mountain to . . .]

[The ocean, through the lava fields . . . ]

[Yes, it is a tourist bus . . . ]

[Time for another overlook, and our first glimpse of the ocean . . . ]

[See the storyline below.]

[FB:  OK, back to the circumnavigation of the Big Island. Beginning with a view of Mauna Loa, the largest mountain in the world; then yet another rainbow, in the Kilauea Caldera in Volcanoes National Park; the Super and Roy at the overlook in hurricane force winds; the last to the ocean lava flow in 2013 (Roy watched it live from the boat); and the Super trying to remain upright in the strongest winds I can ever recall!]

[The views on the way down were spectacular . . . ]

[Danger is everywhere!! . . .]

[The Super is hanging over the edge.  When you look down, you can see the sea is cutting into the lava cliff below . . . . IIIEEEE, someday this ledge is going to fall into the ocean!]

[Let’s head back up before it does collapse!]

[And on the way up, in basically a tropical forest . . . ]

[We survived the walk through the lava tube and eventually made it to here . . . ]

[FB:  Volcano House @ Volcanoes National Park, we stayed until dark to catch the glow of the caldera. We left Volcano House to go back to the Jaggar Museum overlook for these shots. People from every country on the planet were there. When we found a spot, we took many photos – since we were hand holding a somewhat long shutter shot, they were all to some degree blurry. These were the best of the lot – and the first time Roy had seen this.]

[Then we went back to the parking lot for dinner – we packed a lunch and ate out of the back end of the Subaru.  Then back to the lodge for nighttime viewing . . . ]

[Roy and Ruthie at the window. . . ]

[It was ultimately determined we were not going to see the magma glow from this far away, so we went back to where we were earlier in the day and took several hand-held telephotos shots.  These were the best of a sad lot – I needed a tripod.]

To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.  ~ Aldous Huxley

Up next:  More Hawaii . . . or girls’ basketball.

Christmas Eve

[First Christmas presents of the year! OK, the Super just handed them to me. No gift wrapping . . . at my age I’m subject to paper cuts. I’m not sure who she hired to be the model?]

[And we heard him exclaim as he drove out of sight, “Merry Christmas to all and . . . thanks for the Moet & Chandon Imperial and 2 Guys Pizza; it was a nice alternative to milk and cookies!”]

[Why three posted photos?  Because the fruit basket is from the Indiana grandparents and they want to see Jami!  Thanks again, Fran and Ed!]

[Do friends from the “old days” recognize their presents still in use today?  The crystal champagne flutes?  The wine glass candle?]

[My annual attempt at being artsy.]

[OK, you can each open one present!]

[I get to go first . . . I don’t know why?  OK, I’ve been fussin’ for a while about the one thing I wanted – another mouse!  I have a notebook and a laptop but have had only one mouse for a while – and it’s tough to move it back and forth between them (depending on whether I’m using my left brain or my right brain) getting that thingee out of the USB port.  So I got one . . . and a new oriental carpet mouse pad!]

[Then the Super opened hers, which must be some sort of crafty thing?]

[And Jami got wow-wow pants from Mom!  Danny opted to just be the photographer for the night.]

[And Lucky got . . . well, I think he’s trying to figure it out.]

Christmas Day

[As posted on Facebook:  Merry Jewish Christmas! Just saw Star Wars & it was phenomenal. Now we’re awaiting some spring rolls, hot sour soup, and entrees at Great Hunan. Yum!  ~  Jami;    We had a wonderful, restful Christmas. No cooking!  ~  The Super;   And my fortune was: “You have a charming way with words. Write a letter this week.”  ~  Cub Reporter  (Editor’s note: A lot of Jewish Christmases were going on – the theater and Hunan were both packed!)]

Day After Christmas

[We had an off-white Christmas. Our existing snow needed a touch-up. We got it Christmas night and the next morning.  On FB: A drift on our bedroom deck. I’m sure the Super will be out to shovel it as soon as it’s light. I’ll stay inside where it’s warm and cozy to blog about it.]

[FB:  So, under a winter weather advisory, let the blogging begin!]

[Then the ladies and I went out and got to work in our winter wonderland.]

[And the Super made sure her feathered (and furried) friends had enough to eat (she so worries about them).]

[Driveway cleared, I was able to partake of the alumni girls hockey (a/k/a, our “granddaughters”) scrimmage that afternoon – the Super stayed home because her Hoosiers were playing in a TV bowl game.]

[I think this has been an annual event – it’s basically just a pick-up game for whoever is home for the holidays.  And varsity players fill-in so they have enough for a game.  They were playing 4-on-4 with a couple others available for shift changes.  Now, a day later off the top of my head, the alums included Ashley Holmes, Kat DelZoppo, Melissa Drown, Alia Kopischke, Taylor Ellingson, Rachel Drew, Brooke Aaberg, Micaela Swenson, and I hope I didn’t forget anybody?  I’m not going to pretend I remember all their graduation dates, but Ashley and Kat were 2008 (the state champion team) and Brooke was 2012 (from her mom).  The varsity players were Amy Jost (the only goalie), Kristin Trosvig, McKenzie Revering, and Kaitlin Leary.  ID’ing them all wasn’t easy – they have helmets on and no roster jerseys – but with the help of Kristin’s dad, and Melissa’s and Brooke’s moms, I think we got them all.  Below, 45 is Micaela, 14 is Kat, and 20 is Amy.]

[Ashley circles around here.]

[2 is Brooke.]

[Green jersey is Kaitlin, tan jersey is Kristin, 13 in red is Alia.]

[2 is Taylor, blue jersey is Melissa.  Below McKenzie has a big smile on her face keeping up with Melissa.  Is any of this helping?]

[That may be Rachel shooting with Brooke behind her.]

[Ashley may have just shot and Amy’s looking to see if she got it.]

[Hmmmmm?]

[As Ashley skated toward us, she gave a smile of, “How’d I miss that shot?”]

[Melissa (15) is playing club hockey at the ‘U’ – that’s pretty big time hockey.  Her mom said she loves it down there.]

[Ashley is coaching hockey at Augsburg.]

[Taylor is playing softball at St. Ben’s.]

[McKenzie is a junior still playing for the Cards and has committed to UMD in two years.]

[Brooke shares some veteran defenseman advice with Kaitlin.]

[I got a chance to chat a bit with Alia during a short “period” break.  She misses hockey, plays whenever she can – the alums play intra-mural hockey if possible but, like Alia, wish there’d be more ice time available for women’s leagues.  Yeah, two more sheets of ice in Alex oughta do it.]

[And leaving you with Kat.  I hadn’t planned on staying for the full scrimmage (only a little over an hour), but the players were having a lot of fun with each other.  I couldn’t tell if any trash talk was going on, but I finally figured out their “whoops.”  Sometimes the ole synapses aren’t firing on all cylinders, but I finally figured it out in the “3rd period” that the whoops were for hitting the pipes.  Since there was only one goalie, the team shooting at the empty goal could only score by hitting the pipes – early on I was wondering why so many shots were missing the empty net – then was surprised at how many times they actually could hit the pipes!]

Day After The Day After Christmas

[The presents are still under the tree as we await the arrival of the grandson next weekend for the family Christmas.]

Aren’t we forgetting the true meaning of this day – the birth of Santa?  ~ Bart Simpson (Matt Groening)

Up next:  Back to Hawaii?