Veterans Day Parade

Yesterday was Day 5 of the 30 day fitness challenge and the active challenge was to walk an extra 10 minutes.  Easy.  Enter the Veterans Day parade in St. Louis at the Soldiers Memorial.  Stacy and I made the trip into the city and I was glad we did.

We had a great spot in the intersection of 14th and Chestnut looking right down Chestnut toward the Arch.  When the parade started there wasn't to many people so we had a nice unobstructed view.

They even had a Bald Eagle in the parade.  I wish I knew the organization that is pictured in this picture.  I bet they have some other cool animals.

The 932nd Airlift Wing - United States Air Force Reserve Airmen were there carrying this huge American flag.

I'm not sure who this guy was or what war he was in, but he was awesome.  He looked old as dirt but he was walking the whole parade talking to folks along the way and could probably still kick my ass.  Don't know him but I'd interested to hear his stories.  I bet he has a lot.

At first I thought this was a Corvette club, but quickly realized it wasn't. 

Each car had a golden star on the front window and in each vehicle the passengers were holding a picture of a fallen military member (I'm assuming family) riding in remembrance.  Enough said.

I couldn't post this without adding my service of choice.  United States Air Force - AIRPOWER!  They looked good out there marching.  Made me proud.

I love old trucks and cars and this parade didn't disappoint.  I was very happy to see the restored Impala since my dad used to have a white one like it.

The Army showed up with their up in the up armored humvees.

At the very end there were motorcycles.  Lots and lots of motorcycles.  So many that my skills as a photographer don't even begin to do justice.  The sounds was deafening the motorcycles stretched for miles and it was just a visceral awesome sight to see.

Two hours after we arrived I had over 200 pictures on my camera and my face hurt from smiling and the parade was over.  It was a great time and I think the city of St. Louis put on a great display.

Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday I went to a pumpkin patch with some friends to pick out pumpkins to carve.  It was crazy.  I've never seen so many pumpkins in my life.  Everywhere you look there were pumpkins ranging from tiny ones to some that I couldn't pick up by myself.

The Great Pumpkin Pyramid

There were so many pumpkins in fact the longer I stayed the more and more I second guessed my decision.  I kept walking up and down the rows switching my pumpkins for what I thought were better ones when in fact I was probably going in circles.  The difference was zilch - nothing. 

To. Many. Choices.

A small child could have fit in one of these!

Then there were these mutated beasts.  Big orange pumpkin boulders calling my name.  I was under serious deliberations with myself about whether to pop for one.  In the end for $35 my responsible and rational self won out and I walk away for a couple reasons.  First, what do I do with a $35 mutated pumpkin?  Second, but most important, Stacy would have arrived home today, saw the mutated orange pumpkin boulder on the front step, rolled her eyes, and do what every wife would do - question her decision to settle down with me.  Ok maybe not question her marriage, but at least wonder why I do the things I do.
 

My Kind of Weather

After what felt like a rant yesterday I think I should post some updates on the recent adventures I been on.  First we have a trip to Augusta, MO to a local apple orchard - Centennial Farms - for apple picking.  We joined some friends for the afternoon and made a day of just hanging out and enjoying the weather.

Trying to get "artsy" with my photos

Does this make me look like I have ape arms?

We took a hay ride to the apple trees where they dropped us off and away we went.  Before you went out though you had to grab a bag that ranged in size.  Stacy had plans for apple pies and fritters so we grabbed two BIG bags.  We greatly over estimated the amount of apples we needed.

Yes that says 14 lbs.

After the orchard we were hungry and thirsty so after a failed attempt at one restaurant (it was a little to stuffy for our taste) we settled on something more our speed.  Enter the Augusta Brewing Company.  It was right on the Katy Bike Trail so there was a good mix of people and it had a neat vibe to it.  Of course I don't have any photos so you'll just have to trust me when I say it was a pretty cool setup.

Fast forward to October and there was an extended weekend (celebrating our anniversary) in Las Vegas with friends and again photos are limited.  I sometimes ask myself what use is bringing a camera if I don't use it.  Thank goodness for camera phones, right?

Yes that is a steak knife down the center of the plate

Well the couple pictures I did get were from breakfast at the Hash House A Go Go.  Where they market their food as "twisted farm food".  It was spectacular.  The wait was crazy long.  So long in fact when we put our names on the wait list one of the couples we were with went and grabbed coffee from Starbucks, returned, and we all finished our coffee before we were seated with time to spare.  Yeah it was an epic wait but totally worth it.  I swear the breakfast was probably 1,500 calories by itself and worth every single one.

A couple we were with celebrated their anniversary at Mastro's

My choice for the best restaurant that we ate at is Mastro's Ocean Club.  It's located in the Crystal shopping center and WOW.  It's also where I ate the best sweet potato fries in my life along with arctic char, calamari, and the list goes on.  The live music was nice too although it was a little loud at times, but provided a good mix of classic tune-age.

Fast forward again and that brings us to yesterday and my trip to Cuivre River State Park.  Charlie had been laying around looking depressed so I thought I would seize the opportunity and great weather and take him exploring.  I also wanted to get some pictures of the fall colors.  Turns out I might have been a little late, but I think they turned out alright.

I think Charlie is a little lost

Ok well now you're caught up don't you feel better?  I'm running my first 10k in a week so I will post picks of that when I finish come hell or high water.  I know it's only 6ish miles, but my training has been non-existent so it should be interesting.

Great Forest Park Balloon Race

So last weekend Stacy and I headed out to Forest Park in St. Louis to check out the Great Forest Park Balloon Race.  Since moving here we have talked about making the drive to see it, but ended up being to busy or hit traffic that was so bad we lost our steam and gave up.  This year we were determined to make it and enlisted some friends to go with us.  This also held us accountable for going since we didn't want to leave them hanging.  Anyway it was awesome to say the least and well worth the drive.  The weather kind of held out for us.  There was quite a bit of wind so each time gusts would come up the balloons on the outer perimeter would lift and people would scramble on the baskets to hold them down.  It was crazy being in the center of it all.  

Of course there was plenty of fair food and was eager to try it.  I mean after all they have to make a living right?  One place marketed "meat on a stick" and it was simple and great.  Grass fed humanly raised (and all that stuff) beef.  A couple of places had huge hot/brat dogs with this sign I had to snap a photo of.  Gotta love a sense of humor.

Sense we arrived early we were able to see the balloon being pulled out and raised in the middle of the field.  I don't know how they do it without burning the actual balloon, but it's a really cool sight.

With the cloud cover night set in early which was nice because that translated into more time seeing the balloons glow.  I thought this was a cool picture because it reminded me of a light bulb and I liked the design.

This is a good picture with most of the balloons "flame on".  Every couple of minutes they would blast a horn and all the balloons would hit their flame throwers (that's a technical term) and it was beautiful.  Like nothing I've seen before, just amazing.  This picture doesn't do justice.

Last but not least this picture really speaks for itself.  It took me forever to get a good photo of this balloon.  The other balloons kept lighting up and the wind was blowing it around and then you couldn't read the full name.  Finally I just felt like it the pilot was going to light it up and just snapped a photo and the timing was great.  

O.k. one last departing photo.

“Esto Perpetua”

Wow, where did time go?  So much has happened in the last couple days this is going to be a huge entry and photo heavy!  For starters if you don't already know from the title I'm in Boise for a little adventure getaway and it's great.  Leaving the humidity and getting into the wilderness is awesome!  Friday I braved the busy sky's, thunderstorms, and aircraft mechanical problems and flew into Salt Lake City. 

Flying into Salt Lake City, UT

A quick dash to my next gate and I was able to catch an earlier flight to Boise ten minutes before it pushed back from the terminal.  Whew, it was close.  The trip from Salt Lake to Boise was fast.  So fast in fact that they didn't have time to serve everyone drinks and peanuts!

Mmmm...beer

Once I landed in Boise I was starving and met some folks along with Stacy at the Texas Roadhouse for dinner.  I don't remember the last time I actually ate at a Texas Roadhouse, but I was reminded why as soon as I stepped in.  It's not the healthiest of choices for places to eat.  But I wanted a tall beer and they had plenty of good stuff to choose from so what the hell right?  I ended up choosing BBQ chicken breast and apple sauce for dinner and drinking every last bit of my hefeweizen beer.

Saturday was my first full day in Boise and when we travel Stacy and I like to seek out unique places and sample the local flavor.  Saturday morning for breakfast that flavor was Java Coffee and Cafe and it was amazing. 

Bacon, Egg, and Jack cheese Croissant

 After breakfast we wandered around the city and stumbled on a huge farmers market.  It was probably four blocks in size and packed with all sorts of locally produced goodies.  From Bison and Elk meat to organically grown veggies and candles to Alpaca wool bags.  It was awesome to say the least I wish we had something like this back home.

The Market in Boise, ID

After the market it was off into the mountains.  For white water rafting on the South Fork of the Payette River.  We ran Class III-IV rapids and for those that have never been rafting; do it.  Don't think about it just do it, because it's something you will never forget.  I've been three times which hardly makes me an expert, but I know enough to say it's a blast.  The guides are true river rats and are hilarious.  The trip took about three hours and the weather couldn't have been better.  They make the trip very enjoyable and if I'm ever back in Boise I will be visiting the guys at Cascade Raft and Kayak for another trip. 

Slalom Rapids South Fork (1800+/- cfs)

Sunday morning for breakfast we found le Cafe de Paris and what can I say it was another great place for breakfast.  Of course I ordered the french toast and Stacy ordered a much more healthy scrambled egg and trout (maybe salmon) dish which looked delicious as well.  Once we finished breakfast it was time to explore the north and we took a long drive up to beautiful McCall, ID.

French Toast

The scenery is amazing and if anyone has any love for the outdoors they would be in heaven in the Boise National Forest.  Highway 55 takes you north out of Boise and runs along the Snake River and provides great photo opportunities along the way.  The trip to McCall took about 3 hours so lunch was at a quaint place called Bistro 45.  It wasn't a hole in the wall restaurant but it was close.  It reminded me of the type of place that if you didn't know about it you wouldn't go there.  It was by luck that Stacy and I even found the place.  We had been wandering around looking for a place when we smelled something good and BAM!  Down some stairs and to our right was a single door and some tables and decided to try it.

Turkey & Swiss w/ House Greens

I had the turkey and swiss with a mayo pesto, fresh tomato, roasted peppers and a salad.  It tasted like a cross between a pizza and turkey sandwich; yeah it was good.  On the way home we pulled over and stopped to snap some photos of a set of big rapids on the Snake river. 

Snake River rapids

Finally to wrap up the day we dined at Fork Restaurant and there I ate the best and most unique salmon dish I have ever eaten in my life!  It was amazing and I wish I had taken a picture of it.  Maybe tonight I will get a picture when we go back for dinner.  Yes it's that good that Stacy and I are going back tonight.