we're planning another Superior trip...

on a somewhat tentative level we've begun to plan for another trip to Lake Superior for next summer.

this one would be two weeks - although i'm getting some push back on the circle tour vision.

so i guess we'll see.

we would link up with our friends in St. Paul again however we do it.

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ouch! you should get your hand checked out. how can you work that way? maybe you need to switch from riding bikes to reading about other people riding bikes, you know? :)

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Other news? .....hmmm. Bengals are 4-0. Haven't done that since the last time they went to a Super Bowl: 1988 or 89. Who knows. Maybe this time all the way.

My friend Jerry from Huntington Beach (L.A.) was out here for a couple of days last weekend. We played golf, of course. It seems the only time I play nowadays is when I go out there, or he visits here. We introduced Helen to
The Settlers of Catan which is a really fun board game -- very suitable for kids and adults. It supports logical thinking, there's some random luck which throws in some excitement, and there's some competitiveness without truly being warlike. There is a winner and a loser, but people do not get defeated or blown off the board (like Risk). Everyone plays to the end of the game. I had wanted to get Helen interested for a while, but hadn't. So, this was a perfect opportunity. I had actually already gotten Owen interested in it two summers ago at Origins, but it's not really possible to play with Owen and NOT play with Helen. She doesn't like to be left out. Who does?

So... hopefully we'll play again soon. :)

I took Jerry to Boardwalk in Mt Lookout Square and then introduced him to the famous Zip Burger next door - which was always a favorite routine for Jim and me. We also found a new game store at the top of the hill to Mt Washington.

the most exciting thing was that when we were trying to leave the golf course at Shawnee Lookout my car wouldn't start. The power lights all went dark. Turns out one of the connectors to the battery corroded and broke apart! We got a jump, and then brought it back home, and were able to repair it by sawing off the bad part and melding it into a replacement piece. It obviously is not a permanent repair, but a lot cheaper than a Volvo Battery Cable Kit. So far it works. What more can one ask?

NHL hockey returned last night. Bout time.

Helen had hockey practice last night too. Her skating is getting better and better, and she's showing a lot more confidence. Not leaning on the stick. Just skating.