tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51644196996200928592026-04-24T11:57:30.714-04:00Travel stories & photos interrupted with random thoughts about life experiences radiating out of Raleigh, NC.RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-80690529510966668422026-04-23T23:18:00.001-04:002026-04-23T23:18:39.477-04:00

Butters The Dog - RIP 😢Captain Chaos, Master of Disaster - An ode to a four legged life well livedButters crossed the rainbow bridge on Sat April 18, 2026. 18 years of the sweet 55 lb larger than life goofball wrapped in fur has left us.So many memories from this long & eventful chapter now floods our brains - from routine moments to grand events.Tossing the ball - and trying to get it

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1Raleigh, NC, USA35.7795897 -78.63817877.469355863821157 -113.7944287 64.089823536178841 -43.4819287tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-21348883084157292192023-06-25T22:33:00.004-04:002026-04-20T00:27:00.479-04:00

This world lost another good soul to cancer. My dear friend Richard Hopkins heard the dreaded diagnosis in late January then left us just 3 months later. He was 60, but brought the energy and enthusiasm of a 16 yro and wisdom of a 116 yro to everything he touched. The consummate project manager, he planned his celebration of life, but underestimated attendees. He anticipated 50, maybe 75 people

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1Cary, NC, USA35.79154 -78.78111697.4813061638211522 -113.9373669 64.101773836178836 -43.6248669tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-17302757903449249562017-01-22T21:22:00.001-05:002017-01-23T23:54:13.156-05:00

Jan 21, 2017: Raleigh, NC Yesterday Donald Trump took office.Today millions of concerned people took to the streets - across the globe. Inspired by my wife who trekked up to DC for the marquee Women's March on Washington, I joined my friend Katherine and her little girls to head into the heart of Raleigh, NC for the local march. En route Katherine asked "how big do you think the crowd will

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com5Raleigh, NC, USA35.7795897 -78.63817870000002635.3677027 -79.28362570000003 36.1914767 -77.992731700000022tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-66218003287086989122016-08-09T23:19:00.001-04:002016-08-14T23:41:59.083-04:00

Jun 30, 2016: Bergen, Norway Let the Scandinavian adventure begin. After 3 flights, a bus ride, getting settled in our Airbnb apartment and a power nap, Tee and I were ready to officially begin our Scandinavian adventure on the west coast of Norway in Bergen - a UNESCO World Heritage city and gateway to the majestic fjords (more on that later). At 6:30 we grabbed our umbrellas and cameras to

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0Bergen, Norway60.395200982394478 5.325794219970703160.38735648239448 5.3056242199707029 60.403045482394475 5.3459642199707034tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-25619028473377447382012-07-30T00:53:00.000-04:002016-08-14T16:29:08.430-04:00

They say a picture paints a thousands word. I have a thousand photos from our June 2012 visit to Belgium (and another thousand from The Netherlands). I covered our Impressions & Surprises from Brussels in a recent post, but you really want to see photos. Visual highlights from Brussels follow. (Photo credit: some captured by my cameras, some by wife's). Brussels, BE - Jun 22-24, 2012 - Photo

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0Brussels, Belgium50.8503396 4.351710350.7701401 4.1937818 50.9305391 4.5096387999999994tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-44576236535781806042012-07-01T03:22:00.001-04:002012-07-09T13:11:25.017-04:00

We've run into several funny semi-translated Dutch signs & labels while we've been crisscrossing The Netherlands. At least they're funny to us Americans. I started snagging photos of 'em...

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com27447 Hellendoorn, The Netherlands52.3929789 6.45352552.354219400000005 6.374561 52.4317384 6.532489tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-7585520944392019732012-06-29T16:19:00.001-04:002016-08-14T16:23:35.918-04:00

Jun 22-24, 2012: Brussels, Belgium Impressions and Surprises There's a hill in Brussels! After reading how flat the region is we quickly discovered that "Upper town" is higher than "Lower town", hence the names. Brussel's Central Train Station is conveniently located right in the middle. The upper class traditionally lived in upper town. We stayed in lower town (go figure). Not much of the city

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0Jules Van Praetstraat 8, 1000 City of Brussels, Belgium50.8480731 4.348808750.8468201 4.3463412 50.8493261 4.3512762tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-84949536759286354452012-06-20T00:02:00.002-04:002016-08-14T15:19:41.729-04:00

It's been exactly 3 years since Tee and I found ourselves in Europe. Since our final dinner in Schaffhausen, Switzerland (July 2009) we've vacationed in Boston (saw the Red Sox win a pair of games), Cape Cod (where we were engaged and I introduced Tee to the original 15 Short Beach Road), planned and pulled off a really fun wedding weekend in Raleigh then honeymooned on the west coast (San

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-17620181044277702172012-02-12T11:51:00.001-05:002016-08-14T15:21:45.543-04:00

I enjoy being outside, exercise and eating - especially sweets. Since 2004, on the 1st Saturday of February these pleasures are all unified in Raleigh's annual Krispy Kreme Challenge. So last Saturday - early (very early) I was joined by my wife, a co-worker and 7,500 others at the NCSU Bell Tower to run 2.5 miles, devour a dozen Krispy Kremes doughnuts then run another 2.5 back - in under 1

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Raleigh, NC, USA35.78795685587319 -78.63454180413816635.765585855873191 -78.656489304138162 35.81032785587319 -78.61259430413817tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-32824322430965758272009-07-02T16:00:00.007-04:002016-08-14T23:45:48.957-04:00

Jul 2, 2009 - Reutte, Austria Ehrenberg Castle Ruins Hike After breakfast at our quiet valley "Gasthof" (Pension Garni Waldrast) we ventured off on a hike up the trails behind the guest house that lead up to the Ehrenberg castle ruins. With Clif bars and water bottles stuffed into our camera bags we followed a stream up a parking lot in the valley that serves as the launching point for

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com3Krankenhausstraße 14, 6600 Ehenbichl, Austria47.473475094160854 10.72218418121337947.470792094160856 10.717248681213379 47.476158094160851 10.727119681213379tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-21880497076516919382009-07-01T23:00:00.018-04:002009-07-29T00:46:54.295-04:00

July 1st. Time to check out of Pfeffer & Salz, say good bye to Gengenbach and the Black Forest. With luggage repacked, maps in hand, the GPS on hand, cliff bars and H2O to-go, we hit the road after filling up at the Frühstück buffet. Today's destination: Reutte, Austria. First stop, Gengenbach!Yes, we didn't even get out of town. I can't recall what pulled us into the heart of the village one

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-91611141656047515502009-07-01T09:00:00.009-04:002012-08-13T23:31:45.437-04:00

Tuesday June 30th was our last full day in the Black Forest region, needless to say we covered a lot of ground. After a long day in Strasbourg, France we slept in. The day started with a 10am call from Julia at Pfeffer & Salz to see if we were going to make it down for breakfast. Tee was embarrassed, while I was glad we were able to get some breakfast (more of the traditional cereal, yogurt,

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0Mattenhofweg 3, 77723 Gengenbach, Germany48.411869795407114 8.024461269378662148.410552295407115 8.0219937693786623 48.413187295407113 8.026928769378662tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-57153970444347736912009-06-30T09:00:00.005-04:002009-07-06T23:56:12.079-04:00

Our stop in the Black Forest village of Gengenbach was just an hour train ride from Strasbourg, France - I heard good things about Strasbourg and it looked intriguing based on the brief research I did before we hit the road. Having finally mastered a handful of German words and phrases, why not mix it up with a day in France? We caught a morning train on Monday (June 29) and were there by 11:00.

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-88712732476526111372009-06-29T09:00:00.004-04:002012-12-28T12:46:52.392-05:00

Four trains out of Heidelberg, we arrived in the little Black Forest village of Gengenbach on Sunday (June 28) early afternoon. One train transfer totaled less than 4 minutes, we made it.Nobody, including my German friends, seems to have ever heard of this town. Its located halfway between Baden-Baden and Frieberg, just 2 short train stops east of Offenberg; basically in the heart of the Black

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-67623687635195330692009-06-28T09:00:00.006-04:002009-07-06T17:26:39.708-04:00

Just 4 weeks and 1 day after returning from the coastline and jungle of Belize, it was time to venture beyond the familiar confines of the USA again. This time the destination is Heidelberg, Germany for 2+ jam packed days with colleagues literately from all corners of the world (UK, Russia, India, Argentina, Portugal, Denmark, Austria, Romania and more). It was a fantastic opportunity similar to

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-50560521365062550302009-05-31T18:07:00.012-04:002016-08-11T18:35:11.341-04:00

After spending 5 days in the the paradise of the Belize coastline, we took a 15 min flight back to the mainland and trekked into the rural Cayo District (via a rickety red mini van) just outside San Ignacio on the edge of the little village Cristo Rey [map]. On the way, our guide Eric Tut gave us a tour of the Belize Zoo - a small zoo packed with Belizean wildlife - some of which we would see

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-21975782008636797062009-05-21T01:24:00.008-04:002016-08-11T18:14:44.333-04:00

There are a lot of things I want to do and places to visit. I must admit, Belize was not on the first page. I didn't know a lot about Belize and traveling to areas that are more or less third world never captured my imagination. But here I am - sitting on the eastern edge of Central America, on a quiet romantic coastal town under picture perfect palm trees drinking Belikin beer with Tee ... and

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1Ambergris Caye, Belize18.001592 -87.943283717.518437499999997 -88.5887307 18.4847465 -87.297836699999991tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-47068511118072223042009-02-09T23:11:00.009-05:002009-07-06T17:41:35.836-04:00

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. The blog is not dead, it has just been hibernating!Spring seems to have sprung in Raleigh as fast as the stock market tanked last Oct. Two weeks ago there was snow on the ground, children sledding, cars sliding and offices/classes canceled due to some wonderful flakes. Early Spring weather, or at least of preview of what will come in 6 weeks, is a benefit

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-79202416080293923332008-10-29T00:22:00.003-04:002008-10-29T01:23:03.093-04:00

One week til the election. Let's talk politics. An acquaintance recently asked (in cyberspace - does anyone still call it cyberspace??) "why do so many smart people support Obama?" - Ummm... I think that question answers itself. I want to know why people (smart or not) support McCain/Palin. If you are hell-bent on the abortion view and can't see past that one issue, okay, you get to vote along

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-66272134280338035322008-10-13T22:51:00.006-04:002008-10-13T23:31:36.669-04:00

I've been in North Carolina for 18 years sporadically exploring many different pockets of this diverse state. The mountains are an area I've wanted to see more of. So when my brother was planning a family camping trip, I tagged along. Destination: Great Smoky Mountains, Elkmont Campground (technically in TN, barely). Knowing the dynamics of the trip would be tailored to the kids, I grabbed the

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-11220238582498648192008-09-06T11:48:00.002-04:002008-10-31T10:25:01.379-04:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-18346795506088290112008-08-08T15:03:00.007-04:002012-08-13T22:43:50.997-04:00

Every summer I pick up a pack of baseball cards - sort of a nod back to childhood memories of collecting and trading cards. The brand to collect was always Topps®. Last weekend I picked up a pack in the checkout line. Later I carefully opened it and with the anticipation of an 8 year old from Boston hoped for a couple Red Sox players. Miguel Tejada, Byung-Hyun Kim (former Sox!), Kevin Millar (

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-90561861136877044052008-07-02T23:13:00.004-04:002008-07-03T00:23:52.084-04:00

Well the month of June flew by fast.And a lot of free time for the 1st few weeks of the month was devoted to another Jimmy - Jimmy V, specifically the Jimmy V Junior Celebrity Golf Classic. For the past couple years I've been part of the core dozen or so people that coordinate the event. All our hard work resulted in 72 children golfing with 18 local celebrities (plus Lorenzo Charles) supported

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-20733823929608513052008-06-08T21:34:00.004-04:002008-06-08T22:42:52.539-04:00

Saturday June 7, 2008 was a treat. For the 1st time since 2002, what used to be an annual event returned to my town & my calendar. Yes, it was the long awaited Return of Buffett - Jimmy Buffett and The Coral Reefer Band, live in Raleigh outside. With four "fun tickets in my pocket, visions in my brain" we braved the 100° heat to partake in the tailgating ritual before staking claim to a tiny

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5164419699620092859.post-55861259658936145382008-05-12T23:25:00.010-04:002012-08-13T23:38:47.514-04:00

Hey - It's Bike to Work Week! Now if the weather will cooperate, I'll get the bike out (what happened to the drought?). Reflecting back on the Switzerland/Italy trip (I can't believe we've been home 4 weeks), the contrast between the acceptance of public & 2-wheel transportation over there and lack thereof in the US is amazing. It's hard to pinpoint why, obviously it is a cultural difference.

RaleighRedSoxFanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10128696959108797123noreply@blogger.com0Vocabolo Case Sparse, 12, 06063 Magione, Province of Perugia, Italy43.111855038555596 12.2215390205383343.1111305385556 12.22030502053833 43.112579538555593 12.22277302053833