Volleyball

My Girl getting some court time in:

Herping

Went out riding, and scouting. We came across a rattlesnake on the trail while riding, and we saw one or two on the road. This one I only got a shot of with my phone camera. The picture does not do it justice, this snake was just beautiful, it had light red features on its brown skin. We left it alone after our paparazzi moment.

some yard work

I decided that the Saga Palms in the front of the house, and blocking the window, was just getting to big. The removal would be a lot of work with shovel, and pick. I needed to find another way. My neighbor, Dan, has a bobcat or skip loader(Dallas). I dug around the base of the tree, clipped the lower branches, and hooked a chain around the base. I pulled the tree out with the skip loader. I also gave "S" a chance to learn how to drive it, and she did very well.

Men: your not alone

Chula Vista Militia

Made a connection with the Chula Vista Militia.
It was time to site in the scope for my deer rifle. Some time in December, I bought a Savage .270 deer rifle. I bought a Leupold Scope, and sited it in. The mounts kept loosening up, and I did not like them. I bought new mounts, which means I had to resite the scope in. Robert, Nick( his son) and I went out to the local mountains, to meet up with the other half of the group Mike, his twin sons Matt, and Mike and they had an arsenal of guns, and targets.
We had small to large calibur rifles, shotguns, and handguns the 22lr handguns were the most fun for me.
We set up targets at 200yds, 100yds, 75, 50, and handgun plate targets at 20yds
I don't have pictures of the targets, or me shooting, but here is the whole gang sans me.

High School sports has started.

Sorry, It has been a while since I posted. 'A' is back into golf, and is starting to play rounds at Torrey Pines. 'A' Was also picked up by a Travel Ball team with a good reputation ( So Cal Breakers) 'S' Has also started her High School Career By making the Freshman Volley Ball squad. They are a strong bunch of girls. The girls also played in a tournament calle OTL (Over the line) They played last year, and the year before. The game is played in the sand on a court. 3 man teams and you toss the ball to your teammate who tries to hit the ball in the court for a bass hit, or a home rune ( over the last player in the air)The 3 girls defending try to catch the balls for outs. Here are some pictures:

Truck on the move

My good friend Bob and I drove up to Barstow and back, then to Chula Vista, then back to San Diego for 400miles+. but we got the truck down to the engine installers, and it could take 2 weeks. guess I need to get used to the motorcycle.

Truck trouble

We got back from Utah, barely:
Just after we got through Las Vegas. I had truck trouble. The Dodge started overheating, and as fast as I could pull it over, The temperature gauge pegged, and the engine started knocking, and the engine seized and shut off. 'A' and I were stranded in the desert in 113deg heat, waiting for AAA. after 50 mins. they showed up, and towed us 50 miles to Barstow where Kim picked me up she drove up from San Diego 2.5 hours. It is a sad day in the Ratza house. This is going to cost between $3k - $6k, to fix.
Anybody out there got an extra hemi motor?
E

got out for a hike

We decided to brave the heat ( 100+) and get out to see the physical geography. The local mountains were so picturesque. we had to go for a little hike and some rock climbing( in flip flops)
Amber was a little more daring then me, but I held my own, enjoy:

St. George Utah

Made a road trip to St. George Utah for , what else? A softball tournament. It is hot here, but beautiful. So far we have just been back and forth to the fields and hotel, here is a picture, to start with, I will get some more today.

Please pray for the passing of Briana Williams. and her Mom

Briana is a pitcher for the our Renegades team (18u) we practiced together, and she is very funny, and loved art.

Briana and her Mom were murdered this morning by her brother.

She Played for Mt Carmel High School, and her mother was a SDPD.

Her Father passed away years ago.



I can't stop thinking about how terrifying her last moments were. News story below:
http://www.10news.com/news/28581654/detail.html

Politics!

Who says there is no politics in travel ball. "A" has an on base percentage of 100%.
5 at bats, ( 4 hits and 1 walk)
The first two pool games, and she is not in the line up. coaches have her on the bench.
I would think that some one is watching the numbers, not their buddies daughter.
We spent a lot of money for our daughter sit on the bench while girls from his other team come in and play. The girls are coming in and not batting well, either.!!! ARGH!!!

Showcase week has started

"A" is playing ball in Aurora CO., and she just got her first business card from a college coach. Also one of the colleges we were interested in ( Cal Baptist U.) was watching her play. "A" had an excellent game, and went 3 for 3 at the plate with 2 doubles, and a single, and 2 stolen bases. She had 3 RBI's, and crossed the plate herself. She didn't pitch all that great, but she figured out why, and is fixing it.
It was very exciting for us, as some of the other girls on the team tend get get more of our coaches focus.
The college that asked her to call, was Aquinas in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
They are ready to start their game, now, i will report back.

New Toy upgrade VTR1000

The reality is that the GS500 that I was riding, only had 40 horse power, and too often got me in spots that I couldn't accelerate out of.
So I sold the Honda Quad, and put the money toward a bigger street bike. Now I need to sell the GS500, but 'A' doesn't want me to sell it until she can learn to ride.
So I took her out for a spin, and she did great.
The bike I bought is a 1998 Honda VTR1000. It is a V-twin engine, it makes 110 horse power, and 71 ftlbs of torque, and it sounds quite different. It is 13 years old but is in outstanding condition. It has aftermarket exhaust, and is beautiful. It is strong enough to handle a passenger, and that's the first time in years.

Picture Day

'A' had team pictures taken, but that can be boring, so, we took our own:

Cocktail party

Going to have a cocktail party this weekend. The featured drink will be an OBL ( Osama bin Laden)
OBL = 2 shots, and a splash of saltwater.

:)

Osama Bin Laden is Dead!

4/31/2011 R.I.H.

Infidel this .45 round to the back of your head, you piece of shit!
The big questions are still not known:
> what impact will it have on terrorism, hatred for USA, democracy, Al Quieda itself?
> was all news about it, forthright? any lies in the process? did they have to get rid of the body right away?
> Does this make Obama a hero, and a shoe in for a second term?
> Did we really cut off the head of the snake, or just poke it with a stick?


Sailors jump from a deck of the USS Carl Vinson, the same plunge taken two weeks later by Bin Laden's corpse

the same plunge taken two weeks later by Bin Laden's corpse

States and Countries I have been to

visited 38 states (76%)
Create your own visited map of The United States


visited 14 states (6.22%)
Create your own visited map of The World

quadruple header

4 Games back to back. 'S' had a couple good plays, and hits. but it was a long day.

Sister and Niece are in town, Yeah!!!

My wonderful sister, and her lovely daughter are in town. They are visiting from "semi-cold" Indiana. They wish to hit a few California sites, like the beaches, and some other Oceanfront features.
The first day, we went to the beach with some bicycles, and round around the inland waterways, the beaches, and boardwalks, for about 7 miles. We stoppped for lunch, shopped in a a pier-side store. and then went home and had dinner, and called it a night. the next day. While 'S' played softball, the family went to the Swap meet, and then to Shelter Island for some lunch, and shopping at a farmers market, and a alchoholic beverage ( see below) . When the girls got home, 'S' and I had already started washing the trucks. We added Kim's 4runner to the car wash, too. Leslie cooked up a beautiful meal of Garlic Chicken, and potatoes, yum. 'S' made some brownies. what a great day!
cousins:

Kim and Leslie having a little drink