The Staffed Peppers!

Faculty/Staff Softball Team Wins a Game?!?!

As the intramural softball season for students was about to begin, a ragtag group of Life University faculty and staff formed a team in an attempt to hang with the younger crowd. The team name is Staffed Peppers, which narrowly won out over the proposed name of Staff Infections.

After getting thumped, and I mean really thumped, in their first two games of the season, the Peppers caught lightning in a bottle last night, and won on a walk off home run by Maurice Allen in the bottom of the sixth inning. The final score was 16-14 in favor of the Peppers. Out of respect for our opponents, we won't divulge the name of the losing team.

Jenni Bennett, team captain of the Peppers, said after the game, "The biggest difference tonight was the fact that Dr. Marc Schneider didn't play for us. That eliminated a huge hole in the infield." This is likely the last story you'll read about the Peppers since lightning supposedly never strikes twice in the same place...

- This rousing update brought to you by Staffed Peppers bat boy, Craig Dekshenieks

Last but not least...the Golden Gate!

Tioga Road and Tuoulmne Meadows...

On the last day we drove back to the park to at least drive Tioga Road where we had planned out starting our backpack trip. Someone must have been looking out for us since just as I was about to give up hope of seeing a bear at all, there one was! And the traffic jam to prove it! People parking on the road, taking their kids out of the car to get closer to the bear (smart, I know), etc. Wonder what the bear thought of that... Anyways, I didn't realize the manual focus was on the camera at the time instead of auto, so what I ended up with out the rental car window is more "proof" than "photography".

We got back to San Francisco with enough time to get a few shots of the bridge before heading to the airport. Would have loved to stay longer, but oh well. We'll have to return!

More...

More Sentinel Dome & Mariposa Grove...

Okay, they're out of order. Sorry! These are Sentinel Dome and Mariposa Grove...

Sentinel Dome, The Lodge, etc.

So I forgot to finish out our trip to Yosemite! There's more than just the hike - there's sunset on Sentinel Dome, the Mariposa Grove, and The Lodge at the Pines. I won't give a narrative for everything, but the sunset on Sentinel Dome deserves at least a little one!

Sunset on Sentinel Dome is one of those hikes that tops the charts. It's an easy mile hike from where you can park, and the night we went there was a Ranger leading a group of people for what we would learn later was a moonlit walk. We took our own trip up, and once the Ranger group got there I listened in to what he was saying. He started talking moon phases and I sort of had that "Is he ever going to let them go explore and watch the sunset?" feeling when all the sudden he concluded with, "And if I've timed it right you will look over my left shoulder and see the first slivers of our full moon." And boy was he right! It was huge, and it just popped out of NOWHERE! Every camera on the top of Sentinel Dome swiveled to the Clark Range to capture the pictures and sunset was completely forgotten.

Man, do we have good timing!? Who knew it would be a monstrous full moon!? And that we would watch it from the one spot in the park with a 360 degree view?! :0 After a while we walked down on our own, jingling keys and bear bells the whole way in the dark. Are you there, bears?!

The twin-like adventures of Brandy & Jennifer...

So, here's the thing. My boss thinks my co-worker, Jennifer, and I are twins. Secretly, we think he's crazy. ;) Okay, not so secretly.

Sure Jennifer and I think alike, brainstorm for hours over Orientation, Advising, Ropes Course and Student Learning Outcomes, and maybe, just maybe, we come to the office in coordinating outfits every now and then. And okay, we both have brown hair that we mischeviously cut at the same time (we're not crazy, we both actually wanted a short hair cut!) so as to maximize the confusion. And we've been told we have the same "walk", whatever that means.

But we're not twins! When he sees one of us walking the ropes course during Orientation in black capris, a blue Student Services shirt with "We'll Make It Work" on the back, a pony tail and sunglasses...he just yells a name to see if it sticks. Come on, get it straight!

See for yourself! (And while you're at it, take a guess as to who's back that is in the "We'll Make It Work" picture...) The twin-like adventures of Brandy and Jennifer... ;)

More of Loui the three year old...

3 is 21...in dog years!

Loui the chocolate lab is three years old today...twenty one in dog years. I suggested a water bowl full of beer to celebrate the occasion, to which my friend Dave suggested this: "Screw 'beer in the water...' I think you need to give him a 3 Wise Men shot and maybe knock back a funnel or two :-)". Not so sure about that, but then again he'd be ready for football season and tailgating, then!

A few pics of Loui along the way... :) Love this little (big) guy!