Light Up The Halo, The Angels Win!

Every time the LA Angels win at home, they light up the halo that surrounds the Big A sign in front of Angel stadium. Well tonight the halo is lit up and the Angels survive a wild game 5 to advance to the sixth game of the American League Championship Series, behind 3 games to 2. We're headed to the friendly confines of the new Yankee Stadium. With the hostle crowd, the rain and low 40 degree temperatures, it should be a good game. I just hope the Angels can muster a win. We have to win.

GO ANGELS! GO ANGELS!

Beat New York, Beat New York!

GO ANGELS! GO ANGELS!!!!

The Angels' Need to Win.

On Tuesday I went to the fourth game of the American League Championship series with my LA Angels facing the New York Yankees. We got there early and went to the local sports bar to get primed for the game. The place was full of Angel fans, all dressed in red.

Angel stadium was sold out and the place was a rockin'. Both Angel and Yankee fans gathered at the memorial to Nick Adenhart, our first year pitcher killed by a drunk driver just after his first game. This years' march to the World Series was for Nick. But we had to get there first.

At the Team Store, they had the World Series Trophy they had won back in 2002, and it was time to add the one for 2009.

We had good seats, just down the third base line, about 30 rows up. It allowed us to get close to the players before the game and watch the pre-game workout and batting practice. After that we settled into our seats and waited for the game to begin. The singing of the National Anthem, the Armed Forces fly-over and we were ready to begin.

The first few innings we played to a scoreless tie. Then, the scoring began. Unfortunately, it was not for the Angels'. We fell 6 runs behind and we really needed our Rally Monkey.

But tonight, not even the Rally Monkey could save the Angels'. By the end of the game it was 10 to 1, Yankees. We'll have to wait until Thursday to play game 5 and to see if the Angels' postseason continues. Down 3 games to 1, we had to win Thursday.

We also have tickets to the World Series, if we get that far. The Dodgers have lost their Championship series, so there's no chance of a freeway series this year. I printed the tickets to the World Series, just in case the tickets were the closest I get to going to the actual World Series. Angels' have to win.

It's Baseball Playoff Time

It's this time of year that the true sports fanatic has the meeting of almost all the major American sports. Football season is just underway and basketball and hockey are starting their exhibition games. Baseball begins their playoff series in October and some of the most storied names in baseball are playing for a shot at the World Series. The Yankees are odds on favorites to win the whole thing (they spent twice the money of the next highest payroll and payed $100 million in salary cap fines) but I think my Angels have a good chance to challenge them for the title. We went to the last home game of the season and to the rally held after the game to cheer them on.

At the beginning of the season, a talented young pitcher, Nick Adenhart, number 34, had fought his way up to the major leagues and through his hard work had secured a spot in the Angels starting rotation. After pitching his first game, and leaving after 6 innings, only giving up a couple of runs, Nick and three other friends went out to go dancing and celebrate his first game in the big leagues. Only, they didn't make it there. A block away from their destination, a drunk driver ran a red light and T-boned them, killing three of them and critically injuring the fourth. The team grieved and dedicated their season to him, placing his jersey in the dugout for every game and wearing a black "34" patch over their hearts. And when they won the Western Division, they celebrated by soaking Nicks' jersey in champagne and beer, then, as a team they ran out to a poster of him in center field and all patted their hands on his image, again celebrating, pouring champagne and beer all over his poster. Then after, they all posed for a picture with his image. It was quite touching, although there were some that thought it wasn't in good taste to celebrate with champagne and beer on his image and jersey, when he was killed by a drunk driver. I'd like to think that Nick would have loved the celebration just the way it was. After all, isn't that how you're supposed to celebrate winning a title? In front of Angels Stadium, there is a makeshift memorial to Nick and the players have voted a full playoff share of the money they make in the playoffs, to Nicks' family. Maybe, with Nick in mind, this will be the Angels time to beat the Red Sox, beat the Yankees and win the World Series.

Our tickets to the American League Division Series.

GO ANGELS !!!!

Another Quiet Month for Construction News

It's the end of September, another month has slipped by. News on the construction front has been almost nonexistant. Just a few more pictures of the walls being plastered and that's it. I hope that they will start working on finishing the cistern so we have water when the house is completed in January. With only two months left in the rainy season, we're running out of time. But from what I've heard, there has been very little rain in the Consejo area.

The plastering in the kitchen area is just about finished.

The east side bedroom. Each bedroom has four large windows, like the one above.

Looking west from that same bedroom towards the living room and 2nd bedroom.

View from the kitchen area towards the 1st bedroom and living room.

The work on our home here in Camarillo is progressing faster than the construction in Belize but the contractor (me) is always taking time off to do other things. We're headed back to the fair today with friends, to pick up the mirror we bought and to view what we missed the last time. Then tomorrow we are going to Angel Stadium to watch our Angels finish the regular season and attend a big rally and fireworks show after the game to give them the push into the playoffs. We have tickets to game 2 of the playoffs against our nemisis, the Boston Red Sox, and if and when we beat the Sox, we also have tickets to game 2 of the American League Finals, probably against our other nemisis, the New York Yankees.

Then on Saturday, lobster season opens and several friends and I are going down to Newport Beach to dive for lobsters. The ocean is still fairly calm and the water temps remain warm (around 70 degrees) for California. Should be lots of fun.

Pictures from last years dive off Newport.

Then Sunday, it's back over to the Camarillo airport for ultralight lessons. I've been doing quite a bit of video work and helping to set up a new business plan for the owner, Mike. After a recent crash at one of the only other ultralight flying schools, it has left SkyRider Ultralights as the last teaching facility in Southern California. I'm lucky it is in my own backyard so I don't have a long commute to fly. Fall is here and it should be a great time to fly.