Friday, August 30, 2019

Take Me to the River

Good morning, GheorghieFriends! A brief drop-by this morning for me, as I cap a four-week whirlwind of travel with a relatively short three-hour jaunt to Whitestone, VA, at the confluence of the Rappahannock River and the Chesapeake Bay. Our friends have a house there, and I plan to spend the next three days paddling around on a kayak, chasing my puppy around, and drinking too much good beer.

Al Green and Talking Heads played a song for me.



May you all have a labor-free Labor Day.

47 comments:

Mark said...

I’ve spent a good chunk of the day hurricane prepping. Bought plywood, gas, checked my generator, removed a bunch of shit that could fly around in the storm. I’m not as concerned as I many are but it pays to be prepared just in case shit gets bad. Happy Labor Day weekend!

rootsminer said...

Just had a Beto rally 15 feet from the front door of my print shop (at the wine shop next door). Drew a surprising crowd for 14+ months out with little advance notice.

TR said...

Did the National Museum of American History and Arlington National Cemetery w/ the boys today. I am embarrassed at how little I’ve dug in to this area as a parent tourist. Amazing day, and surprisingly sparse crowds.

$60 ticket (w/ fees) gets us 10 rows behind the Marlins’ dugout tonight. A whole lot better than the money pit that is Yankee Stadium. I’ll tell Mattingly I hope Jeter doesn’t fire him after the season.

rob said...

it’s a pretty amazing town in terms of actually cool and meaningful things to see. i certainly take it for granted. glad you got to arlington. that’s a sacred place.

Whitney said...

TR, what rob held back was that his papa was laid to rest at Arlington. I consider it more than an honor and a privilege that I was invited to attend that incredibly moving ceremony. I think about it every time I drive on Rte 110 by there.

TR said...

Wow! That is something that needed to be shared. The scale of that place is hard to contextualize when you are there. The white headstones extend as far as the eye can see. We saw JFK’s gravesite and walked around until my younger one started feeling the heat a lot. There were a lot of veterans there of all ages. Can’t imagine what many of the older ones were thinking.

Kudos to your dad for his service, Rob. That’s something your kids and grandkids will be able to cherish.

rob said...

thanks, tr. wrote about it a long time ago (https://gheorghe77.blogspot.com/2011/03/honor.html?m=1), but it’s hard to capture that place in words. i get there every few months. never fails to move me.

zman said...

DC is a cool city. I would’ve been happy to stay there. Tons of world-class museums, and they’re free. You can run into the Museum of Natural History for 20 minutes just to see the Hope Diamond, some dinosaurs, and a basilosaurus (and its tiny hip bone) without feeling pressure to get your money’s worth. Q

Mark said...

Now Dorian May not make landfall until Tuesday? God damn. Holy hell, I don’t think I’ve ever waited this long for a hurricane.

TR said...

I hear ya, Zman. We saw Dorothy’s ruby slippers!!!

Mark said...

And I concur on DC. Took my wife there for her first time a few years back but we didn’t hit even close to enough of the sites. Looking forward to returning with my youngest soon as she’s getting to the age where she’ll be able to appreciate it.

Donna said...

The pandas are worth the trip to the zoo, as long as it’s not blazing hot! We love DC, too!
And my husband officiated a service at Arlington about 16 years ago —incredibly moving and humbling.

Changing gears a sec bc I know y’all love cars...anyone in market for Mercedes wagon: E-Class wagon, red / parchment MB-Tex 2014 E350 4Matic with about 53,000 miles. Maintained by the dealer per the schedule. The battery recently failed (and was replaced) but other than no repairs. Located in the DC area right now (Germantown, MD area). Priced at $26,500 and hard to find red wagons.

The description is from my friend’s brother, who is a big car guy. They’re selling car that belongs to their mom, who is no longer driving.
Looks like this is pretty good deal, not that I know anything about cars.

I do know this car—it’s beautiful! And these folks have been only owners, garage-kept, etc! I’d buy it if we could afford it. Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll connect you to sellers.

Mark said...

Wake-Utah State is a barn burner. College Football isn’t great for my sleep patterns.

zman said...

I swear to god I was just scrolling through the MB national CPO inventory of E class wagons.

Whitney said...

hi gheorghies!

Marls said...

Hi Whit!

Dave said...

i hate having to get my money's worth. one of the problems with trekking to a museum in nyc. or going to a chinese buffet.

Dave said...

or the wendy's superbar! forgot about that disaster of gluttony.

zman said...

KFC all-you-can-eat buffet on Richmond Road did my intestines no favors.

TR said...

I am near Richmond Rd now! Gave my kids a chance to pick things out at bookstore. Oldest picked a hat and a cool sweatshirt. Youngest picked a Spider-Man comic book. That’s some Zman-level Tribe pride by the little guy.

Beautiful day here. Wish it was more convenient to make the trek regularly.

zman said...

Hungry Peddler Steakhouse for dinner?

TR said...

I’m staying at a dumpy place on Bypass, so thinking late dinner and CFB at Hooter’s.

zman said...

I’m so surprised you’re thinking about Hooters.

Mark said...

Hooters buffalo shrimp is underrated. Just saying.

Dorian watch Day 2-3. Things keep getting better. Doe Doe needs to slow her roll or I’ll end up having to work on Tuesday.

Mark said...

I just discovered that Tennessee lost to Georgia State and it would be tough for my day to get better.

Mark said...

And FSU lost too. Quite a fucking Saturday.

Mark said...

Auburn-Oregon was fun. It’s always more fun when you don’t have a dog in the fight. Speaking of which, USC-Fresno State is mildly intriguing.

Whitney said...

Glad Mark and Danimal seem out of harm’s way. Hoping this mother doesn’t set her sights on SEVA.

Oh, hi, gheorghies.

Shlara said...

There's a Hooters in Williamsburg?

rob said...

woke up early, paddled a kayak around for an hour so so, ate some breakfast, elected the pope, now pleasantly chilled out watching the north london derby. and lots of day still to waste.

TR said...

Rob’s winning. I’m sweating at Busch Gardens. Their Fast Pass deal is a bit of a bust, but fun. My youngest is exactly 54” tall, so we’re doing nothing but chugging the extreme rides. I am close to vomiting.

Fun Tribe win. We officially have a QB. True Freshman Hollis Matthews is a great 2-way threat. We won’t be good this year, but his development will be fun to watch. We also have a good D-line. There was a 20-min wait at Hooters, so we went to a sad Mexican place next door. Lots of kids at the Hooters, so I didn’t feel too bad.

zman said...

I woke up at 10:55. It was glorious.

I’m in the market for a new carryon roller board. Any of you road warriors have a rec? I have a $20 coupon from Away. They incorporate a battery into their luggage so you can charge your phone, but keeping your bag charged seems just as much of a chore as keeping your phone charged, and it has to add weight. Any thoughts?

TR said...

The batteries are an issue for airlines and they bust balls about that. I would avoid one.

I have a Tumi designed for suits/blazers. I can get 2 suits, 4 dress shirts and other stuff into it and carry it on. Not cheap, but has been a workhorse accessory for almost a decade.

Mark said...

We’re not quite out of the woods down here just yet. The continued growth in strength of Dorian has the potential for a storm surge that could affect us on the barrier islands. Continuing to closely monitor things.

Danimal said...

My weekend away was for the purpose of driving my dad and I to a family wedding in Cazenovia, NY. My dad is 83. The mental faculties are largely there, physical not so much. Some good father son bonding time but not exactly a stress free wkd between caretaking and Dorian worry. Happy for Mark that what looked like a potential doomsday for him has been averted large-in-part. Kids school is canceled thru Thur. The storm we are going to get could be just about perfect in terms of severity....just enough to likely get the wkd extended another day and maybe two and not too bad where we will sustain any damage/flooding....where we are anyway. Fuck you Dorian.

Danimal said...

Back at Dulles now enjoying the first of a couple double tito's.

Mark said...

School is cancelled through Wednesday here as of now. I’d bet they extend that. Still a “mandatory” evacuation for the barrier islands here effective tomorrow. At this point I’m staying put like I usually do but that could change depending on what Dorian does. Nothing to do but wait, and drink, at this point.

Danimal said...

All our beaches have to evacuate tomorrow at 8, which seems odd. St. Aug, Ponte Vedra, Jax.

Mark said...

That’s the same time as our beach/island evacuation. From what I can gather though, I don’t have a single neighbor in close proximity to me who’s actually planning on leaving. Most of have been there and done that with these storms and are probably too stubborn for our own good.

Whitney said...

Stay safe, gheorghies. We need you.

Whitney said...

Justin Verlander... first balloter? Pride of ODU.

Mark said...

If you’re an athletic QB, Oklahoma and Lincoln Riley should be your goal for a CFB career.

Mark said...

Wife and I are sitting out on the pool patio having a drink. You can already feel the early winds of Dorian. Pretty surreal that such beautiful weather is a direct effect of a monstrous storm off our coast.

Whitney said...

The weather the day after a hurricane is so beautiful. OBFT 3

Dave said...

we could use some rain up here in jersey. do some voodoo and send a bit of the storm our way.

rob said...

someone post a billy bragg song or somesuch

T.J. said...

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