A "MAJOR" FIRST

Our first Major League Baseball game. Angels versus Athletics at the Coliseum in Oakland! My first visit to the stadium since 1972 back when Charlie O. Finley was owner and hotpants were the latest and greatest craze in women's wear. Reggie Jackson, Sal Bando, Joe Rudi, Bert Campaneris, Catfish Hunter, Rollie Fingers, and Vida Blue were some of the players on the A's at the time. Handlebar mustaches were popular with the players.

We checked in early into Embassy Suites near San Francisco International Airport. What a surprise! They upgraded our room to a spatial suite!

We ride the BART to the Oakland Coliseum. It was my very first ride on BART.

We arrive to the game just as the Angels were scoring big against the A's. Our BART had brake problems.

Our seats were along the first base side behind home plate. Right in the sun. The sun was too intense to our liking so we walked around the ballpark finding empty shaded areas to sit and watch the game.

We left the game after the 7th inning stretch to catch the BART before the crowds and return to our hotel suite.

Later found out that the Angels won 11-5.

JOHNNY COME LATELY

This is a good jammin', foot tappin', square dancin' song you will love. Click on the title to see them record the tracks to the song...

Then go buy "Copperhead Road."

Song by Steve Earle

I'm an American, boys, and I've come a long way
I was born and bred in the USA
So listen up close, I've get something to say
Boys, I'm buying this round

Well, it took a Iittle while but we're in this fight
And we ain't going home 'til we've done what's right
We're gonna drink Camden Town dry tonight
If I have to spend my last pound

When I first got to London it was pourin' down rain
Met a Iittle girl in the field canteen
Painted her name on the nose of my plane
Six more missions I'm gone

Well, I asked if I could stay and she said that I might
Then the warden came around yelling, "Turn out the lights!"
Death rainin' out of the London night
We made love 'til dawn

But when Johnny Come Lately comes marching home
With his chest full of medals and a G.l. loan
They'll be waitin' at the station down in San Antone
When Johnny comes marching home

My P-47 is a pretty good ship
And she took a round coming cross the Channel last trip
I was thinking 'bout my baby and letting her rip
Always got me through so far

Well they can ship me all over this great big world
But I'll never find nothing like my North End girl
I'm taking her home with me one day, sir
Soon as we win this war

When Johnny Come Lately comes marching home
With his chest full of medals and a G.l. loan
They'll be waitin' at the station down in San Antone
When Johnny comes marching home

Now my granddaddy sang me this song
Told me about Londen when the Blitz was on
How he married Grandma and brought her back home
A hero throughout his land

Now I'm standing on a runway in San Diego
A couple Purple Hearts and I move a little slow
There's nobody here...maybe nobody knows
About a place called Vietnam.

But when Johnny Come Lately comes marching home
With a chest full of medals and a G.l. loan
They'll be waitin' at the station down in San Antone
When Johnny comes marching home

But when Johnny Come Lately comes marching home
With a chest full of medals and a G.l. loan
They'll be waitin' at the station down in San Antone
When Johnny comes marching home

FOUR7EEN

On this date 731 days ago...

My wife doesn't know it yet, but we are going to celebrate our second anniversary at Ruth's Chris Steak House in Fresno. We have never eaten at Ruth's, so this is another first for both of us. Claim Jumper "would have been" nice, but why not spice things up on one day out of the year.

She thinks we will be going to REI (next door to Ruth's by the way...how convenient) to pick up a converter for her hairdryer and some gaiters (my anniversary gifts to her she thinks...the gaiters anyways) and then, on the way home, order a "to go" pizza and eat it at home while we watch the All-Star game. Also, we are going to do a little bit more packing. What better way to celebrate our anniversary!

Not.

Hee hee...

It is only my plan...

Needless to say, she is a little upset this morning about the whole shebang.

I knew she would be...

Early this morning, I placed the anniversary card on the passenger-side dash so she could see it. Plain view. Can't miss it. You can see the card from 50 feet away.

As we got ready to leave, I opened the door for her like I always do since the first day we met. I go back around and get in the car and the envelope is still on the dash.

I put the car into drive.

The card is still on the dash.

On our commute to work, she hardly said a word. Meanwhile, I am busting up inside trying not to give away my plan for our special evening. She is flipping through radio channels to break the silence.

The card is still on the dash.

We stop by Starbucks for her daily fill of a grande black coffee with room for cream.

When we got back to the car, she said, "I'll get it myself."

Ruh roh...

Then she says in her "upset" mode, "Remember, I need the car for my hair appointment."

Acting surprised, "Oops, that's right. I forgot. But remember, honey, we have other errands to do in preparation for our trip."

"Well, I am getting my hair done and I am also going to get a manicure and pedicure before we go on our trip."

We get to work and I drop her off so she can open up the office while I drove around to the employee side to give her coffee and the keys to the car. She slams the car door shut.

Yikes! She's pissed!

I park the car and get out to hand her her coffee and keys, while she grabs her lunch.

The card is still on the dash.

Saying no more, I gave her a little peck on the cheek (she turned her lips away at the last minute mind you). I handed over her coffee, but snatched the keys out of my hands and walked into the building without turning around or blowing a kiss goodbye.

"Happy anniversary, dear. Have a wonderful day!"

Everyday, I always email her and she promptly responds.

Not today. Not even a "read receipt" from her.

She's really pissed!

I just hope my little scheme doesn't backfire...

It is a long walk home!


Post...

Had a wonderful dinner at Ruth's as planned after shopping in REI. The table was sprinkled with rose pedals. I had a ribeye and fries. She had a salad, lobster tail and steak filet. The lobster was overcooked so she ate the filet and asked for some steamed asparagus with hollandaise sauce. Our appetizer was the tempura onion rings. The Chocolate Explosion dessert was on the house as well as the lobster.

Burp.

Going to have to step up on the workouts.

Oh yeah, she did open up her card and she gave me mine.

Kiss, kiss, kiss...

And I will leave it from there...

Can't wait until #3. Fleming's perhaps? Provided they don't go belly up!

LOGISTICS

Preparations are underway to assemble our hiking gear. Packs, shells, jackets, layered clothing, gloves, convertible pants, headwear, headlight, boots, socks, gaiters, bladders, food.

We printed the necessary paperwork for our trip and assembled it into the folder marked "Japan."

The other document is my checklist. Some of you know how detailed that checklist is.

The two jars of peanut butter are for my mom. Only this time the peanut butter goes in the check-in luggage! We are not going to make the same mistake my mother made when she returned to Japan last December. Thanks, TSA, for the follow-up.

And get this...REI sells these chopsticks by Snow Peak and my mom wants some for herself and for her sisters. Last Christmas, I gave a pair to my wife for Christmas, and my mom was very impressed with the design. She wanted a pair to take home with her, but REI didn't have any in stock after the holidays.









Now this gets interesting. The chopsticks are made of stainless steel and recycled birch wood from old baseball bats of players in the Pro Yakyu (Japanese Baseball) league. They weigh only one ounce. When extended they are 8.5 inches in length and when compact, they are 4.5 inches. Snow Peak is headquartered in Niigata, Japan, so you would figure you could get these in Japan, right?

Wrong!

My mom cannot find these anywhere in Japan! Go figure!

So, while we are over in Japan, I want to stop by a camping goods store to see if I can locate the elusive Snow Peak Compact Chopsticks.

Okay, back to the rest of the story...

The paper sack is filled with gifts for the family.

The yellow shaving kit just happened to be there.

The extra shoes are for us to take on our trip.

Oh, and the newspaper? They have a section where people travel afar and then they send in their photo of them displaying the paper in the photo. What people will do to get their picture in the paper. Pretty neat.

We have only two days set aside to scale Japan's most revered mountain which is 12,388 feet in elevation.

The Fuji-san hike will be like approximately "half" of a Mt. Whitney dayhike only with 1,000 feet of elevation change per mile! We are calling it the Fuji-san Snow Peak Compact Hike. Yikes! Yes, the Japanese are well-known for making things compact, but tough. Just hope our knees hold up on the descent.

We have no idea what the trail conditions are like. I got some reports but nothing current.

We do know there will be at least 2,000 other people on the mountain. That makes us appreciate the quota system used for Mt. Whitney.

We do know this...none of my family members will be escorting us on the hike like they said they would earlier this year. Guess my mom told them that we are crazy "gaijin." My wife and I will be on our own. Good, we like it that way. Now, only if the weather cooperates. It is the rainy season now in Japan. Lightning and rain.

This will be my wife's first international trip. She will be seeing my mother's relatives for the very first time, except for Kimiko, who she met in July 2007. All of our Japanese relatives are anxious to meet us. This is my first trip to Japan in 35 years. The "kids" I remember back then now have their own families.

And one more thing...

We are going to...

Have fun.

FOUR MILE TRAIL

In preparing for our Fuji-san climb, we decided we better hit the elevation to get our bodies prepared for the thin air at 12,388. We looked at options in Yosemite National Park. Tuolumne Meadows, Mist Trail, Half Dome, and John Muir were out due to the expected crowds during the Fourth of July weekend. Yosemite Falls was an option, but we already hiked it.

Then, there was the Four Mile Trail.

We always wanted to hike this trail, but with the Mist Trail and Yosemite Falls Trail in the area, the Four Mile Trail was just a sidebar and wasn't even an honorable mention.

Not any more...

We hiked the Four Mile Trail in YNP. Actually 4.6 miles oneway, where the extra six-tenths of a mile came from is anybody's guess. Maybe there wasn't any GPS in the 1800's. There is 3,200 foot of elevation change (695 feet per mile) starting at the trailhead at 4,000 feet in Yosemite Valley and topping out at 7,214 feet at Glacier Point. It was the closest to an acclimatization hike we could get.

You really get a good workout negotiating the 67 switchbacks, but the scenery at each of those switchbacks takes your mind of the physical anquish.

There are four ways to hike FMT:

1. Drive to Glacier Point and hike down and catch the bus back to GP.
2. Start from the valley and hike up and catch the bus to Yosemite Valley.
3. Start from GP, hike down, hike back up.
4. Start from YV, hike up, hike back down.

We did #4. It took us 5 hours and 45 minutes to hike it. We spent over 45 minutes at GP.

It is a trail unlike any trail we have hiked in YNP. Eighty-five percent trail is covered with asphalt. Great for the going up, but terrible on the going down especially when there is fine debris covering the asphalt and one wrong misplaced step leaves you shouting a few expletives as you slam on your backside! There is dirt along the trail to negotiate around those expletives.

We started at 7:15 a.m. We pracically had the whole trail to ourselves considering this was the Fourth of July weekend. A couple of hikers passed us on the ascent, but that was it. We encountered a family coming down as we got closer to Glacier Point.

Once we got to GP, we went into the snack shop and bought some bug spray BECAUSE SOMEONE FORGOT TO BRING IT! Yes, that someone was me. Anyhow, I purchased a Gatorade and my wife bought a trail mix bar and some water. The ice cream drumsticks looked oh so good, but we abstained.

GP was flooded with tourists. Busload after busload. We took a few pictures and headed down.

On our descent, we encountered a lot of hikers. Some with overnight backpacks, some who had no business hiking the trail.

"How far to the top?" or "How much further."

If you have to ask, you shouldn't be here.

Now, the people who asked the above-referenced questions were the ones who had only one small water bottle with them and it was getting warm because the sun was getting high in the sky.

Oh well, at least the trail is 4.6 miles one way. It is between the 0.0 and 4.5 mile part you have to address.

Some notes for those who are interested in this trail.

The hike is best done early in the morning. If you timed it right you can reach Glacier Point in time for the sunrise and before the tourists arrive by the busloads.

Another advantage to starting early is the parking. We parked at the trailhead. We did not have to park at Swinging Bridge. Caveat: There are no toilet facilities at the trailhead, but they are at Swinging Bridge.

It was a little chilly at first, but as we made our way up, the sweat started pouring.

Bring at least 1 to 2 liters of water. You can fill up at GP during the season. During the off-season, you may want to reconsider the amount of water you want to bring. Also this trail is subject to closure due to rockslides.

Bring insect repellent. Don't be like that SOMEONE!

And, bring that camera!

Have fun.

Asphalt into the wilderness.

Up there somewhere is where we will end up.

First watering spot. Expect this to dry up around the end of August.

Beauty to behold and one of them is mine. Guess who?






















El Capitan to the far left.
























A succulent grows in the granite.
The last storm to pass through the area on June 30, started a couple of lightning strike fires in Yosemite National Park. Fire crews were lighting back fires to contain the blaze.

Yosemite Falls floweth.

That darn rock got into the picture!

One of the few parts of the trail NOT covered in asphalt.

North Dome looms in the background. We will do this hike next!

Signposts. Almost there...pant...pant...pant...

Some guy on the trail.

Another shot of Yosemite Falls.

If it ain't the rocks in the way, it is the trees!

That rock again.



























What is my wife doing?


























Almost to the top.

That rock keeps getting in the picture.

Again, that rock.

The Glacier Point benchmark: 7,214 feet

We were here.

If it weren't for that big rock there would be a great panoramic view!

Heading back down.

Union Point benchmark, or what is left of it after vandalism.

The view at Union Point is something to behold. A "must stop" on your way down. Sorry, no pictures. You have to hike here to see it all.

Three miles to go to the valley.

Yosemite Falls.


















It was a great hike and a lot of fun.



Wherever I may roam...

TO DO WHAT MUST BE DONE

In preparing for our Fuji-san climb, we have donned our packs and loaded them with extra weight...training heavy, treading light.

The temperatures have hovered above 100 up here in the foothills. You can feel the heat rising from the asphalt.

The stinging sweat that gets into our eyes adds to the agony of hiking with a full pack in high heat.

Although the training hikes are less than 5 miles, there is a lot of elevation change. That is what is important right now.

The breeze offers cooling comfort towards the end of our hiking session.

We have also intensified our workouts in our gym. Leg presses, core conditioning exercises, and upper body development, then we do our training hikes. High reps. Then add more weight. Repeat. The burn is intense, but it is what we must do.

The garage literally a dry sauna, but we keep pushing ourselves. The fans offer no relief, but the music from the radio helps us keep going.

After our training, we take a dip into our pool. The water soothes, refreshes. Once outside, the breeze feels good to the point of goosepimples.

Our diet comprises mostly of fish and chicken, organic vegetables, and, of course for me, brown rice.

To do what must be done.