Oh Atlanta

Spent the past weekend down in Atlanta...the centerpiece of the trip was the BC-Georgia Tech game, won by the Eagles 24-10. Had a great time and got to see some college friends for the first time in years.

Started Friday morning with L driving me out to Logan for a 12:25 flight. Met up with the Captain and Count Macula and settled in for a $9 bloody at Game On. A beer and it was time to board, suitably relaxed. First time I'd flown in 3 years, and all went well. We were held up approximately 15 minutes due to some weather in Atlanta. A safe landing and we were off to get the rental.

From the time we got off the plane to leaving the terminal, it started to rain. Hard. By the time we got to the rental lot, it was pouring. We discovered we had been given an SUV...which I had never driven before. We got out on Rte. 85 north, and the wipers couldn't keep up with the rain. Cars had their four ways flashing while driving 15 mph. Great fun! I thought I was being crowded by cars on either side, until I realized the SUV was big enough to fill the lane.

We stayed at the Wingate Inn in Buckhead, and I recommend this hotel highly. Good value, clean rooms, great staff. They steered us around and gave us a good recommendation on barbecue for the tailgate. We checked in, got squared away and repaired to the bar for a few beers.

Drove out later to visit my friend Scott and his family...he was kind enough to grill us steak, fry us some okra and make us feel at home. Drove back later in the evening and met Count Macula at the ESPN Sports Zone to catch the end of the Yanks-Sox game. Met a couple of BC fans down for the game there, then headed over to Fado's to close the evening out. When we were down in Buckhead in 1998, it was hopping. They've had a lot of trouble there since, and the area's being converted to a Rodeo Drive shopping area.

Woke up a bit fuzzy-headed Saturday morning...after a few coffees and Advils, I stood ready to face the day. Wound up driving the Captain down Peachtree St to the GT campus in the late morning. Tech fans were already out tailgating at 11:30 - a good 8+ hours before gametime. Stopped and checked out The Varsity - The Captain has horrified by the greasy food on display, and we both took a pasadena on eating there. Bought a Tech shirt for G and headed back. I met a former colleague from my old job, who had moved to the area with her husband a year ago. We had lunch across the street at Tin Lizzy's cantina, and we had some excellent tacos. Spent some time talking with Michele about work and life - she's a great gal.

After lunch, I walked back to the hotel and my friend Steve and his S.O. Lynn had just arrive. hadn't seen him since my last visit in 98. They checked in and started in on the Michelob Ultras in their cooler. Not my first choice, but better than no beer at all. Scott and his family arrived a bit later, and we had our traveling party.

I had borrowed a cooler from Scott the night before, and had already bought some beer and ice during the day. The Captain and I finished buying provisions and got some barbecue at a place I can't remember the name of. We gathered up everyone and made the trip to the campus just after 5. I knew where the pay lots were - what I didn't realize was that one of them was directly across the street from The Cheetah, Atlanta's premier gentlemen's club. In the interest of full disclosure, two members of the traveling party made their way over for a visit (no names please, and rest assured your humble blogger wasn't one of them). Everyone enjoyed the 3 Bs (beer, Bushmill's and barbecue) and we were fed and lubricated for gametime.

The walk over to the stadium was an experience. We went down frat row and saw more drunk students than you could shake a roofie at. The Tech fans were a gracious sort for the most part, with the exception of the drunk kids throwing bottles on the field during the game. We got to our seats in the BC section and rooted the Eagles on to victory. Saw a few people I know from the home games, along with the CFO from where I currently work.

The game ran long and we didn't get back to the hotel until nearly 1am. Tried to get a last beer at Tin Lizzy's, but it was packed full of kids and we called it a night. The next morning we all met up for breakfast, said our goodbyes and we were on our way to the airport for a noon flight home. Got in early and after dropping the Captain off in North Station, got home by 4pm.

Plenty of fun, shared with good company. And we won.

Full Circle

Spent part of the weekend teaching G how to drive...we were in the parking lot of the hospital where she was born, although it's been turned a medical office complex. Hard to believe 16 years passed so quickly. G passed the permit test last Thursday, and she's been out with both L and myself. Once she gets a bit more comfortable, we'll transition to the streets, most likely on a quiet Sunday morning. G also starts sophomore year in HS tomorrow, so it's back to the old commute.

Had a busy weekend...G's nose was out of joint when I didn't take her to the Spirit game two weeks ago, so I took her last Friday night and we were rewarded with a 3-2 win. Saturday was the BC home opener, so I met up with Capt. Lou and some other friends and enjoyed a great tailgate and an Eagles win. Sunday we all went out for a housewarming cookout at our friends Dave and Mary. And on Monday I rested. :-)

G and I hit the WWE show last Monday. She loved it, I thought it dragged a bit. This was all before the suspensions hit, so we pretty much saw the full roster in action.

Another home game this weekend, and then it's the Atlanta trip.

Monday Night Raw

Heading into Boston in about an hour with G - we're going to the WWE show at the Garden. G is bouncing off the walls as I type, as she's about to see her hero, John Cena, in person. It should be fun.

Spent last Friday at the North Shore Spirit game in Lynn with a couple of friends from the Noise Board. Sat behind home plate, drank a few beers, watched the game and talked about music. The home team even had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, but the runner was thrown out at home (rather easily). Went into Chinatown yesterday for a dim sum run at Emperor's Garden and some bubble tea in Harvard Square.

Hard to believe the football season starts this week. Will have to fight the students moving into their apartments to get to the BC game on Saturday.

"If I knew I was going to live this long, I would've taken better care of myself"

Just a quick note - successfully made it through G's sweet 16 party and my own 50th birthday. Both events went well, and I promise to follow up with more information. Right now I'm dead tired from going to the gym and working to get the weight I've put on since vacation back off to stay.

I count my blessings and am thankful I'm here, relatively healthy and surrounded by family and friends. And that's what it's all about in the end, innit?

Sheiky Baby!

After getting back from NH on Saturday, I took G over to Somerville to the MWF show. The main attraction was The Iron Sheik, who was surprisingly low-key. No ranting and raving - he sat behind a table and signed autographs and posed for pictures. In the photo above, the guy on the left called a friend on his cellphone, then handed it over to Sheiky, who was nice enough to chat for a minute. now, I do have to say the Sheik was a bit glassy-eyed, but I didn't bring a breathalyzer along, so I'm left to my suspicions.

The show itself wasn't bad - they imported talent like Road Dogg and Alex Shelley from TNA, and Joey Mercury, who was recently released by the WWE. The usual local performers were there, like Slyck Wagner brown and Rick Fuller, along with Diehard Eddie Edwards, whom I had never seen before and came away impressed by. G liked Nocturne, and happily razzed him as "Emo Boy". It ran long though, didn't get out of there until 11:25. The crowd was down to under 100 by the end.

G had never been up close for matches ( we sat in the third row), and she was pretty impressed by the bumps the guys took. All told, a fun evening.

Vacation 2007

Back home after spending the week in the North Conway NH area. We rented a condo in Glen, just up the road from Storyland. I'll post some pictures later on. We had a blast...did some canoeing on the Saco River, rode the alpine slide at Attitash, dipped our toes in the falls at Diana's Baths. Ate a lot and relaxed. The weather was fine until the end of the week, when it turned hot and humid. It's good to be back home though, just relaxing on the couch and watching the Yanks on the tube. Back to the salt mines tomorrow.

Errata

I misidentified the young man who played with Buddy Guy Friday night - his name is actually Quinn Sullivan, and here's a video of him playing with Guy earlier this year in New Bedford. It runs over 9 minutes, but well worth checking out: