annapolis boat show

Each October, the world’s largest sailboat show is held in Annapolis, MD. From October 8-12 the Annapolis Sailboat Show gave boaters the opportunity to check out the latest and best. The Sailboat Show displayed new racing and cruising sailboats from leading U.S. and foreign builders and the nation's largest multihull display. I'm not a big fan of "window shopping," but I sure didn't mind walking onto various catamarans, trimarans, and 80 foot luxury sailboats--imagining what it would be like to sail away in one of these beauties.



Aerial shot of the Annapolis City Dock and Harbor



Maryland State House



Streets of downtown Annapolis



We are the champions



Grinding away



A quaint little bookstore



US Naval Academy



Does this remind you of the scene from Patriot Games when Jack Ryan, a professor at the US Naval Academy, takes out the guy that tried to kill him as he was walking to his car? Ok, probably not; but I thought of that scene as we were walking down this side street on campus, so we reenacted it.



left: filthy rich boat owner right: me [asking him how he did it]



Commandeering his boat



Boarding another beautiful maritime vessel



On an impromptu US Navy campus tour, we stumbled upon a rousing Navy v. Penn State Lacrosse game.



Navy Sailing Team taking out some 420s



I really wanted to buy this boat



Navy Mascot

plenty of sport in boston

Hurrying to finish the last chapter of my book, I tossed the abused paperback into my bag and glanced out the window as our plane touched down into Logan International. It was 10am on a Tuesday morning. I was glad to be traveling, and not at a desk back in Washington. Without having made any previous plans, we checked into our hotel, and grabbed a map from the concierge. I couldn't help but notice on the way into the hotel how nice it was outside. Not only nice, but gusty. In my examination of the map, something stood out, the pigment of said something seemed to glow from the one-dimensional-folded brochure map. It was the Charles River and the connecting Boston Harbor making up the city's outline. Before I could form the words to what I was about to say, a smile spread across my face as I looked at my three adventure-ready friends and suggested we go sailing.



Chatting up the locals for directions to the marina. We called at least eight different boating outfits in the city before we found one that did rentals.



The name of the man in the distance is Jim. It was incumbent on me to make friends with him and gain access to one of his boats. Jim and I became fast friends. And like most sailors, Jim was a talker. We listened to some of his crazy sailing stories and about his wife that swore she loved sailing before they married, who [with bitterness in his voice] never did take a liking to the sport.

Instead of paying the 75 dollar day fee to skipper one of the Flying Scots, Jim offered to take us out on his boat for free.




Boy Scouts pays off. If any of my nephews are reading this, here's a little hint, ask your mom to help you out a little. One day I'll expect you to be my crew when I take you out sailing; so learn your knots! Sure I spent countless hours earning those merit badges; but I wasn't alone. Much to my chagrin, I give my mother most of the credit for my Boy Scout successes.



"Where everybody knows your name..." [We had to get a picture in front of the Cheers cafe.]



We're inside! From this moment on, I felt like I was on a rollercoaster. A five hour ride that I never wanted to get off.



It is difficult to imagine a place more appropriate to break in my new camera.



I take certain satisfaction from stepping into the ballpark hours before the first pitch is thrown. Everyone has a happy place. The ballpark, especially Fenway Park, is one of mine.



A Dad, a Mom, and their three daughters. Baseball in Boston runs in your blood. If only the rest of America could appreciate the game like Bostonians do. America needs to remember the history, the significance, and the message of the game. Perhaps the time is ripe for a re-awakening, a baseball revolution if you will, of America's greatest pastime.



One of the little intricacies woven into the fabric of the game we call baseball. A little boy wearing his favorite player's number on his back, innocently enjoying the "ballpark experience."



The manual scoreboard. One of Fenway's defining characteristics.



The pulchritudinous Green Monstah.



rev-er-ence
–noun
1. a feeling or attitude of deep respect tinged with awe; veneration.
2. the outward manifestation of this feeling: to pay reverence.
3. a gesture indicative of deep respect; an obeisance, bow, or curtsy.
4. the state of being revered.



I love a good hat, and I love Yawkey Way. So I unsheathed the VISA.



This photo speaks to me more than any of the day's photos. [The view of the ballpark from a left fielder's perspective.] I love the outfield. Only one position in sport rivals the sheer awe and beauty of playing the position of outfielder. The position of linebacker in American Football comes very close to delivering an equal feeling of wonder and amazement. But this is only my opinion of course.



The view from our seats behind home plate.



And to close out the day...a 'good game tap' from Emily.

After the Sox's heartbreaking loss to Toronto-down one run, bottom of the ninth, two runners on, full count, Youk at the plate...four despondent Virginians made their way back to the hotel to get a few hours of shuteye before our 6am flight the following morning. [A one hour flight, and 440 miles later, we would sneak into our offices in time for work that morning.]

conversation catch

Playing a good game of catch is a lot like good-stimulating conversation. Tossing around the ball with a friend is without question my choice pastime. However, I find equal satisfaction from good conversation. But not just any conversation; a type of dialogue that excites and inspires. A type I will call "conversation catch."

It is intoxicating to catch the worn cowhide-leather ball in the web of my glove and then zing it back with gusto into another's glove. The glove (the mind) catches the ball (the idea) and then throws it back at the other person. When playing catch with a friend, I find myself trying out new ways to catch the ball, and creative ways to throw the ball into his or her glove. Sometimes it’s a bad throw. Sometimes I throw the ball short, and it doesn’t quite reach the person. And sometimes I throw it over the person’s head, and he has to going running after the ball. You see the key to a good game of catch is for one to throw the ball close enough so that it lands into the glove of the other. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to throw the ball right on target each and every time.

Much like the mind, a well-stretched, athletic person can get to a ball that may take some sincere effort on his part to catch. Many sports fans often witness spectacular catches and spot-on-throws on Sports Center’s TOP 10 Plays of the day. Let exhibit A be, “the diving catch.” The diving catch is the acme of one’s skill. During a ball game a defensive player must be on the balls of his feet, prepared and alert. The ball may be hit his direction in any number of ways. He must position himself in such a way as to ensure plenty of time to backpedal, sidestep, or suddenly scoop up, or dive for the ball; to “catch the idea.”

As a little boy I tried nearly every technique in order to get my baseball glove formed just the way I wanted it so I could be successful on the field. I consulted my friends, asked my coaches, and even came up with some innovative ways of my own to soften that glove and mold it to perfection. I dug up some of my dad’s old glove oil and rubbed that good stuff on every last inch of the glove. I put it in the microwave; I slipped it under my mattress and jumped on my bed until I was too dizzy to jump anymore. I even had my friends’ older brother run it over with his car. All this so my glove would be fully operational come game time.

Do we take similar steps to prepare our minds, like I did my old childhood glove, before we step out onto the field each day? I maintain that the better oiled our glove, and the more familiar we are with it, we will meet with a kind of success that few only dream about. Our glove will thus be enabled to catch nearly any good throw that comes its way. It will take that idea, synthesize that idea, apply that idea, give feedback to that idea, then dart it back off into the other person’s mind.

To lob a ball back in forth while remaining a short distance away from a friend would be, well, rather dull. A good game of catch, unadulterated “conversation catch”, insists on taking a few steps back, and testing out new ideas, or ways to throw the ball. Only then will you truly enjoy the reciprocity and thrill of—“playing catch." With fair warning, you may fatigue. But know, that the more challenging and difficult the game, greater the reward will be. When one is engaged in that type of conversation, the mind is probed, tested and stretched. I believe the great Vince Lombardi understood the concept of "conversation catch" very well. He once said, “I firmly believe that any man's finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious."

Now ready your glove, get a good grip on that ball, and let's play catch.

olympic games in rio

A euphoric sense of opportunity came over me when I opened my browser window to Economist.com today and read a headline titled, "Rio's Sporting Carnival." I was crossing my fingers that the IOC would choose Rio over the other candidate cities Chicago, Tokyo, and Madrid; but I thought that was merely overly-optimistic wishful thinking. High crime rates in Rio were a huge concern for the committee, so I never gave the bid much consideration. With the world lens sharply focused on Rio for the next six years, the time may be ripe for sports development programs to take advantage of the publicity and tackle the complex urban youth gang problems in the city.

With Rio hosting the 2016 Olympic Games, dramatic changes will occur in the sharply divided city. Squalor is omnipresent, as is state corruption. I will be very interested to see the changes come into effect, and at whose expense. I don't expect that the inhabitants of the more than 800 favelas will receive too many positives from Rio's presence on the world stage. However, I hope that I am proven wrong. I hope that the global attention on this divided city will in some way trigger a movement of change in both the favelas and the government.

a documentary worth watching

This documentary is about a man who emerged from the slums of Rio de Janeiro to lead a nonviolent cultural movement. He won the hearts and minds of many. His message fought a war.