Spontaneous Sunday

Once the Boston RedSox schedule was announced in March, I started looking forward to their LA visit to play against the Angels. The last game of the series happened to be on my B'day weekend and a spontaneous decision was made yesterday night to go for this game.

The Angels stadium was 1 hr+ drive north of San Diego and we left around 10:30. As we approached the stadium, it started raining and Sheila started complaining that this is not the perfect San Diego weather :)  The girls and I wanted to be close to the action and I had bought "Field" tickets just 10 rows from the field between home plate and 1st base.

As we entered the stadium, it was raining and Sheila was livid with anger that there is no roof over our head :) She was yelling at me: "...next time, before you buy the tickets, you have to tell me where we are going to sit..." :) I had paid extra $$ to be close to the action and she wanted to sit under a pavilion, far away from the field :))

 The girls are ready with their signs!!

Kevin Youkilis' unique stance, holding the bat horizontal above his head. "Big Papi" Ortiz on deck. We watched the first innings in soaking rain, covering our heads with whatever we have :) 
Luckily, the rain stopped by 2nd innings.

In the stadium, there were more RedSox fans than Angels fans. This is not a surprise since RedSox have fans all over the world from the oldest to the youngest, including this little boy!!

Ex-San Diego hitter Adrian Gonzalez drove in couple of runs with this hit. By this time,  all the rain clouds had passed away and it turned out to be Sunny & Hot. Sheila started complaining again: "...hey, it is getting too hot now.." :)

The game is just a small part of the whole electrifying atmosphere in the stadium, with guys selling Cotton Candy, Hot Dogs, Popcorn, Pizza, Snacks, Drinks and Ice cream ( yes, in the rain!!! ). And...watching people...always...interesting ;)

We were delighted to watch Carl Crawford, the 142 million $$$ man, hit his first home run of  his first season with the RedSox.

Cheering Carl's home run hit!
Whenever, Youk came to bat we were all chanting and yelling "youk...youk...youk.." and for Ortiz,  "papi...papi...papi".  Swetha and Shreya (of course, and I) were thrilled to watch our favorite RedSox players up close and personal.

John Lackey, the starting pitcher did an outstanding job, pitching 8 scoreless innings :)

RedSox won 7-0, sweeping the Angels, winning all the 4 games @ LA.

After the win.

Both in 2005 and now we have watched  RedSox play as a family and have won both the times. So, Swetha, Shreya and I have decided to drag Sheila with us to all the future RedSox games, rain or shine, snow or Sun :) :) :)

The fun part is, Sheila was relating the game to Cricket. Whenever foul balls went outside she screamed "Sixer...Sixer" :). When a player got thrown out at a base she was yelling "Run Out" :))

We are all looking forward to the RedSox-Angels playoff games in Oct. :))

A Reliable Wife

I am sure I got your attention with the title :) It is the title of a fiction I read recently. I love reading books and always pick up a new book before going on vacations to read during long flights. Picked up this book without knowing anything about the author and based on the synopsis on the back cover:

         He placed a notice in a Chicago paper, an advertisement for a "reliable wife." She responded, saying that she was "a simple, honest woman."She was, of course, anything but honest, and the only simple thing about her was her single-minded determination to marry this man and kill hm, slowly and carefully, leaving herself a wealthy widow. What Catherine Land did not realize was the enigmatic and lonely Ralph Truitt had a plan of his own.

This happens to be the author's first fiction. While books by unknown authors have turned out to be boring, I couldn't put down this book easily. Read it on the flight to Philly  & back and in D & G's house whenever we were not roaming outside.

Didn't want to give away the plot except the story happens in 1900s Wisconsin and St. Louis :)

Enjoy - if you end up reading the book.

Off The Beaten Path

While on vacation, I enjoy striking a chat with locals and strangers I meet. People share a slice of their lives with me. Sometimes, this leads to strange connections, coincidences and common interests. I also love the small towns which are tucked away from the big cities and touristy spots.

HAMAKUA:
On our driving trip to Hilo, we stopped by in a small town called "HAMAKUA" to have a snack and pickup our picnic lunches to eat at the waterfalls. This is a very small town with Mom & Pop shops. It looked as if this town was stuck at 1950s and never changed. Loved the antique look of it. This town also reminded me of the many coastal New England small towns we used to visit from Boston.

The owner opened this shop 4 years ago and is absolutely enjoying making and selling fudges and ice cream and
having customers from all over the world.

This Sandwich shop lady just had her grandson born and was proudly showing the photo of her grandson to all the
customers and her friends visiting her at the shop. This lady told Swetha and Shreya that a Mom sacrifices
a lot for their kids and advised them never to fight with Sheila :) The shop has a beautiful mural on one side.

A Guy sitting outside a shop:

A middle aged white guy was sitting out side enjoying the Sun. When I passed him first I smiled at him and he smiled back. On our way back, he stopped us and asked if we are all from India. He told that his wife is from Kerala and he enjoys visiting India. When I asked him what work he does, he told that he is working as a hiking guide to tourists. What a way to work, have fun and enjoy the beauty of the Big Island everyday!!!

A Japanese Couple at the Luau:
When we attended the Luau @ the Hilton, we all were dressed up for the event in flashy, colorful attire.  Sitting right across from me at the dinner table was a middle aged Japanese couple, dressed in normal, simple dress. After few minutes of conversation, he told me that he has visited Mumbai and Delhi. When I asked him if he was visiting as a tourist or for business, he said he visited for business. He then handed m his business card and said he is the Chairman of an Airport Construction Company in Kansai.!!! Can't help noticing how humble and simple he was.  He asked me to visit him  when we visit Japan :) and I ended up inviting him to San Diego. After the Tsunami, I sent him an email inquiring about his family, friends and company. He replied that his family is not affected as they are all living in Osaka but few folks he knows were affected by the Tsunami.

PUNALU'U Bakery:

When I told my friend at work that I am  visiting Big Island, he asked me to stop at the Punalu'u Bakery which is at the southern most tip of the big Island. He especially recommended the Coconut Bun which is similar to the தேங்காய் பன் we get  back home. After visiting the Volcano National Park, we drove another 2 hours and stopped by the bakery @ 4:59:59 pm. As we parked the car, some one said, "they are closing the shop". Sheila ran in to the shop and pushed through the door as they were closing. We were the last customer that day and were able to enjoy the தேங்காய் பன் :)). Apparently, this is a famous bakery and so many folks came after the shop was closed and were disappointed.

Retired Guy on Bike:
While going for a morning walk at the beach with Sheila, met a retired guy on a bike. While chatting up with him, he mentioned he is from Connecticut but lives in Big Island for 5 months from Jan. to May. Hmmm. That sounds like a good retirement plan for me. Looking forward to it :) :) :)

வா வெண்ணிலா !!!

Tomorrow is the Perigee of the Moon. Happens once in 18 / 19 years. Looks like it is going to be rainy and cloudy tomorrow. So spent the Friday night outside hanging out with my telescope and the moon :)

Snorkeling

Big Island, Hawaii

Effect of the boat ride on Swetha and Shreya

None of us had done Snorkeling before and we were all excited.We woke up early, left at 7:30 and drove an hour to the pier to board the boat. We were on the boat for an hour which took us further south close to the underwater reefs. After having breakfast on the boat, we tried our newly bought snorkel masks to make sure we have a good fit. It was such a rocking boat ride that it affected Shreya, who threw up :). Swetha was feeling queasy too. I was surprised that Sheila didn't get affected since she is the one with motion sickness problem :)
















After the boat stopped, we put on our snorkel masks and fins and got down to the water. I have to admit that it was little bit overwhelming, once I knew that the water is any where from 10 to 50 feet deep. It was tough  to let go off the boat and just float. Thanks to my recent swimming lessons - and the floating tube :) - I got very comfortable in few minutes.

Once I relaxed, I started enjoying and was able to swim around to any place I wanted to checkout. The view of the underwater reefs was fantastic. Spotted a wide variety of fish with yellow and blue stripes. More than the reefs and the fish, it  is an amazing feeling to float on water. I felt that I had graduated from 5 feet deep swimming pools :))

We had picked up an underwater (film) camera and
I tried to take as many shots as possible.
Few of the shots turned out to be ok.

At lunch time, the boat crew rang the bell and we got on board and had a BBQ lunch. Right after lunch, we got back in the water to do some more snorkeling. As we were snorkeling, one of the crew members got in to the water with a underwater video camera and recorded every one. We should be getting the DVD in 2 weeks. Soon it was time to pack up and return.  While returning Swetha and Shreya were just fine but not Sheila :)

Effect of  Snorkeling on Swetha and Shreya :)

Hang loose !!!

Big Island, Hawaii
 
One of the new things I learned while at Hawaii is the "Hang loose" sign. It involves extending your thumb and little finger while curling the middle 3 fingers, raising and rotating the hand back and fourth.

It is used by locals as a way of greeting or to say "hang loose" or "cool" or "relax". As we drove through the remote areas of Big Island,  kids on the street side greeted us with this sign. Swetha and Shreya with the Luau dancers showing the Hang loose sign.

Nou Ka Hale

Big Island, Hawaii

Whenever we go on vacation, our first preference is to rent a house or a condo as opposed to staying in tiny hotel rooms. This is working out well since there is no rush in the morning to get out and have breakfast elsewhere - the girls love to sleep in late on vacations. We all love it when Sheila whips up a spicy and yummy Indian dinner (:-P...

The condo we stayed at during this Big Island vacation,  "The Shores",  was fantastic in many ways. It is located in Waikoloa (வைகோலவா) resort area which includes Hilton, Marriott resorts,  plenty of luxury condos overlooking the  beaches, multiple restaurants, a golf course, couple of shopping  centers and with an easy walk to 2 beaches.

The whole resort area is nicely landscaped with multiple ponds, water falls, almond tress and coconut trees. The complex was very quiet and is nicely located away from highly commercialized, touristy areas but still close enough to the spots we wanted to visit and enjoy.

It seems that the entire Waikoloa resort areas was built on lava fields since many buildings and  landscaped areas are surrounded by long stretches of black lava fields and rocks.

For 6 days we felt that we are staying in our home. A welcome card placed in the condo correctly captured our feelings as "Nou Ka Hale" which in Hawaiian language, means "Our Home is Your Home".

A Swing by the Sea

Big Island, Hawaii

Sheila and I went for a morning walk on the beach, 10 minutes walking distance from our condo in Waikoloa. We were told this is a rocky beach with less sand but decided to check it out anyway. As we approached the beach I was stunned by the unique combination of pure white rocks and the dark brown/black rocks (which are due to the Lava which had flowed in to the sea long time back). Adding to this breathtaking contrast is a line of coconut trees along the beach.

There were not many people around except few joggers, a family, an old lady and a guy with a bike. As we were walking along, spotted few whales breaching the water at a distance and a line of early morning sea kayakers  rowing their kayaks out to the ocean.

As we turned a corner, we were taken aback to find a wooden swing made of  a tree trunk hung between two trees. A swing at the edge of the sea!!! A fitting finale to the stunning scenery and a pleasant morning walk.

LUV2LUV

In all the other cities I have lived,  I have noticed few cars that have customized licence plates instead of the standard mixed jumble of numbers and letters. When I moved to San Diego, the first thing that struck me is that many cars have customized licence plates.  Most of them are funny and clever.

Here are some samples with my own interpretation. You never know what the owner of the car actually wanted to convey.

FEL4REX  => Fell for Rex

MYMSTR  => Love my Master

CASURFN   => California Surfing

BIGBLVR  => Big Believer

PACGEM => Pacific Gem

XZ MYST =>  Exciting Mystique

LEGSPNR => Driven by an Indian girl at work.
                             One day I will ask her if she is really a leg spinner OR
                             others' legs spin when they look at her :)


Here are some suggestions :)

Sri:  NYNYNY
         The guy loves Newyork. Translates in Tamil to  நய் நய் நய் :)


Diana: 2SHOOT 
Ganesh: 2BUGDi


Siva: HOOTR :)


Sathi: TALAIVR =>  Thalaivar


Surya: PODIQN => Podi Queen


JP:  VIPMVP   => Very Important Person. Most Valuable Person.


Mala:  AMMAEE =>  My Mom's Mom!


Priya: TCHRMA => Teacher Amma :)


Asha: 2SHP => Love to shop

Swetha: 2RGU => Love to argue :)

Shreya: 2PPT  => Love to use Powerpoint

Sheila: 2BLG =>  Love to Blog


Sundu:   2 =>  Love to Love


Let your imagination run wild. Lets hear your versions,

Anyway...

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.   

Forgive them anyway. 

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. 

Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and 

some genuine enemies.   

Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you.  

Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.  

Create anyway.

  

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous.  

Be happy anyway.

  

The good you do today, will often be forgotten.  

Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough.  

Give your best anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God.  

It was never between you and them anyway.

- Mother Teresa

There goes (went) my Total Lunar Eclipse!

I was planning to photograph the Total Lunar Eclipse through my telescope yesterday night. Due to the non-stop rain that has been drenching San Diego for the last 4 days, it was a complete washout. No complaints, no problem. :)

Here is the October 2004 Total Lunar Eclipse photos, taken through my telescope, in sequence from left to right, from top to bottom.  Enjoy!

Enjoy :)

Have a good day!

The More The Merrier

Beautiful Pair

Today

Tomorrow

ஞமலி

Looking out of my 11th floor office window, saw this dog  (ஞமலி in pure Tamil) chasing a ball :) When nature puts on a show like this, can't help wondering there is someone out there doing all this for us to look up and enjoy :)