All Roads Lead To Home

Molly’s Day at the Spa

2009-07-07T20:38:00.002-04:00

It all began on a sunny Sunday morning in South Windsor, CT. We decided to take a nice day hike at a local land preserve, packed Molly in the car and set off. There were some caches in the area that we found, barely before the ticks found us! After a couple of mad dashes through fields full of the critters we headed back to the car.

Molly must have been really hot because as we passed an area of soggy wetlands, staying clean and dry on the pathway provided, she suddenly jumped off the edge and sunk into the mud! With a look of utmost confusion on her face, we pulled her out and back onto dry land. She drenched the both of us with a few well-aimed shakes and was happy as can be after that.

Only one problem, though… we didn’t bring a towel. Doh! So the next thing I know, I’m in the car driving to the nearest CVS to pick up a cheap beach towel and a gallon of water, and I’m covered in black sticky mud. Needless to say, one gallon of water and one measly beach towel didn’t even come close to being enough to clean 30 pounds of mud off of 50 pounds of dog! But we loaded her into the car anyway and drove 20 minutes to my friend Ashlee’s house to use her outdoor shower for a dog bath. Yet another downside of apartment living: no outdoor faucets or sprinklers.

The next day she got a complete makeover and came home from the groomer softer than ever and with a fancy new 4th of July bandana. She had her ears cleaned, her nails trimmed and her whole body shampooed, conditioned and brushed. She looked and felt amazing! But after her muddy adventure, it was well worth the effort….by the professionals of course!

Phun Times at Phenway

2009-06-03T11:46:00.010-04:00

It’s been 8 years, 4 months and 3 days since I last saw Phish and was kindly reminded Sunday evening at Fenway Park why these four Burlington, Vermont natives are so incredibly talented. Even being at the home of the Red Sox couldn’t ruin this perfect day!

The excitement of the day really sunk in when we finally hit the road enrout to Boston and the first few notes of the new single, Time Turns Elastic, came threw the truck speakers. I’m not a huge fan of the new track, a little too ‘adult contemporary’ for me, but any Phish is good Phish. After a quick detour through the South Side to pick up Corey, we parked the truck in a lot near Yawkey Way and set up camp for a few hours of good conversation, quality beer and the sights of the “lot scene”.

To help subsidize the cost of a Phish show, (parking, tickets, beers, merchandise…) I had a bunch of tees printed up. They had Phenway on the front in a Red Sox font and 09 on the back, and we sold them in the parking lot before the show. It’s a great way to help cover costs and makes for a nice collectible as well. Next time I’ll print more cuz they went fast…

We made our way to the gates around 5pm and had to wait in line for a few minutes until they turned us loose on Fenway. As soon as we were in, I headed straight to the merch booth to check out this tours line of goodies. The Fenway show posters were limited to 1,000 and were FLYING off the shelves so I picked up two before they sold out, which was within minutes.

Now for the good stuff:
After a brief announcement by Carl Beane, PA Announcer for the Red Sox, reminding fans not to interfere with balls in play, no smoking in the stadium (which drew a ton of Boo’s), and a few other general announcements, he asked the crowd to turn their attention to the pitchers mound where the National Anthem would be performed by four faithful Red Sox fans and JEMP recording artist PHISH! After a nice accappella version of the Star Spangled Banner, Phish appeared on stage within minutes and kicked off their summer tour with Sample In A Jar.

The boys sounded nice and tight during a scorching first set that included a nasty Stash, a new song in Ocelot, which is quality, and a nice Down With Disease and Destiny Unbound, amongst others. Trey was hitting every note with authority and precise timing, nothing like the sloppiness of the Hampton shows just months earlier.

The second set featured two more new songs in Light and Time Turns Elastic. Both of which were OK and should improve as the tour progresses. Another favorite of mine, Bathtub Gin, was solid, but the 2nd set highlights go to the Lynyrd Skynyrd cover, The Ballad of Curtis Lowe (with Page on vocals), and the 21 minute Y.E.M which closed out the 2nd set.

After a brief encore break the boys took the stage for a 15 minute run through Cavern, Led Zeppelin’s Good Times Bad Times, and a Tweezer Reprise.

Overall it was a great show and I hope my next one is a lot sooner than 8+ years from now. I think Staci really enjoyed her first Phish show. They’re one of those bands that can get anyone up and dancing even if you are unfamiliar with the catalog of music. Setlist below for those that care.

Phish
05/31/2009
Fenway Park, Boston, MA

Set I:Star Spangled Banner*, Sample in a Jar, Moma Dance, Chalkdust Torture, Ocelot^, Stash, Bouncing Around the Room, Poor Heart, Limb By Limb, Wading in the Velvet Sea, Down With Disease, Destiny Unbound, Character Zero

Set II:Tweezer, Light^, Bathtub Gin, David Bowie, Time Turns Elastic^, Free, The Ballad of Curtis Lowe, You Enjoy Myself

Encore:Cavern, Good Times Bad Times, Tweezer Reprise

* from the pitcher's mound.
^first time played

Clive

2009-06-03T10:29:00.002-04:00

This post goes out to my good friend Scotty and his late cat Clive who was laid to rest on Saturday. Clive was an awesome cat who loved nothing more than a good brushing and a little bit of love. Heaven is now a better place with Clive in it. RIP Clive.

First ‘Yak Of The Year

2009-05-29T11:16:00.009-04:00

With the weather starting to get warm and Staci and I both having Memorial Day off, we thought it would be a good idea to dust off the kayaks and make our maiden voyage on Connecticut’s waterways.

After getting a late start to the day Sunday we loaded up the truck and made our way to Bolton Lakes, about a 15-20 minute drive, around 2pm. As we pulled into the boat launch, the skys were starting to look nasty but the urge to get on the water couldn’t stop us, so we took the ‘yaks off the truck and made our way to the waters edge. Generally we’re smart and safe when it comes to the outdoors, i.e. life jackets, whistles, bear bells, 1st aid kits, GPS and so forth, but not so much this time.

So we set forth on the medium size lake, staying moderately close to the shore line in case the storm hit us. As we headed southwest and made our way around the lake admiring all the nice houses and doing the usual, “if I owned that house I’d do this” talk we noticed that the storm was really starting to move fast and straight for us. Staci noticed the first lighting strike in the distance, and I do mean distance, we’re not THAT dumb people, so we decided to head back, rowing feverishly straight towards the storm. Within minutes the lighting was getting close so we played it safe and made our way to the nearest dock, which happened to be a private one no less, to wait out the storm.

The rain hadn’t started pouring yet so we were sitting on the dock admiring the lightning storm when the rain finally started coming down. Staci decided she would go knock on the owners door and ask if it would be alright if we brought the truck up to their house and carried our kayaks through their yard because at this point we realized if we were going to wait out the storm it was going to be hours and the lighting was really getting close.

So off Staci goes, sprinting to the truck as I sat on the dock getting drenched by the rain. Minutes later she pulled up in the truck and we rushed to get the kayaks loaded up. We headed for home to dry clothes and to check the weather report for Monday. Lesson learned.

Monday was THE day to go kayaking. No thunderstorms or clouds in the forecast so we made our way back to Bolton Lakes and decide to drop in on the Upper Lake rather than the Middle Lake like the day before. These two lakes couldn’t be further apart when it comes to their characteristics. The Upper Lake had no houses, was extremely shallow, was covered with lilly pads and had more wildlife than the other side.

When we got around the bend we came across a large congregation of geese and, as always, we tried to get close for a photo-op but only managed to scare them away. Oh well, they’re just geese, nothing special. We decided make our way to the far end of the lake and stop occasionally to take in the tree covered hills and bake in the sun when eagle eye Staci spots a Blue Heron. No chance of getting close to these guys, they are way too skittish.

When we reached what we thought was the end, we realized that there’s plenty of marshy areas only a kayak or canoe could go, so we decide to keep exploring. With Staci leading the way we headed towards the marsh when suddenly she stops. What has she spotted now… an enormous turtle that probably tipped the scales at 25+ pounds and had a neck the width of a forearm! Once again, we tried to get close and I scared him off. Damn! After a few more hours of enjoying the sunny, warm weather we headed for home…Just in time for dinner.

Welcome to our blog!

2009-05-09T00:20:00.005-04:00

Welcome friends and family to our little bit of bandwidth on the world wide web. With all the wonderful people we’ve met over the years, from the left coast to the east coast, we thought a blog might be a good way for us to share some of the wonderful times we’ve had and memories we’re making. With that being said…

Life in New England

2009-05-09T00:13:00.013-04:00

We were fortunate enough to move from Virginia to Connecticut in time to catch the last rays of summer before a beautiful New England fall came. If you’ve ever been to Connecticut in October you’d know that this is leaf peeper’s heaven.

The changing trees lined the Mass Pike as we drove to Boston for the weekend to visit my cousin Corey. Boston was nothing like I expected. The rich history and old buildings were a sight to be seen. We took in an improve comedy show then saw the most enormous collection of jack-o-lanterns you’ve ever seen. Good times were had by all. Corey should order the blood pudding next time, too.

With my busy work schedule, Staci and I were unable to travel for the holidays but luckily I have family nearby. That’s the nice thing about living on the east coast, everything and everyone is so close. Sometimes that’s a bad thing, mainly traffic, but not when it comes to family you haven’t seen in quit some years.

So my other cousin Lindsay and her husband Mike invite us down to Middletown, CT for Thanksgiving. If memory serves me correct, I think this was Lindsay’s first time cooking Thanksgiving dinner and I must say she did a fantastic job. Thanks, Lindsay, for havin’ us!

Christmas was spent relaxing at Matt and Jen’s house, yet more cousins, surrounded by good people with good conversation. Children always make a house feel alive. We can’t wait to see them again.

Well that brings us up to January 2009. We’ll save the rest for another time. Remember to bookmark us and please leave us a comment. We’d love to hear from you!

With Love, The Browers