Thursday, August 9, 2018

Fiesta and Football


Thurs., Aug. 2 - Thurs., Aug. 9, 2018

The weather in Ventura County continues to be HOT so we opted for some more outdoor activities this past week.

First up was a trip north on Friday for the annual . . .

. . . Santa Barbara Fiesta Days

Lots of colorful egg shells for sale . . .
  
. . . at only 25 cents each usually . . .

. . . all stuffed with . . .

. . . CONFETTI!

Perfect for smashing on people's heads which is a Fiesta tradition.

Mostly this is done to friends and family until the drinking starts.

The Fiesta's Parade

Firemen in the parade were
greeted as the heroes that they are

And they helped cool off many of us 

parade with LOTS of horses 

 Beautiful horses at that

White ones

Brown ones

With mantilla covered Doñas

Lots of vibrant colors

Almost like being in
Sevilla in the Spring

What an outfit!

It is so sad that many of today's
parade members may be unable to
attend this great event once that
damn wall is built

 After the parade, it was time
to shop and eat

 Interesting Dodgers bandana

No sale.

Ah the . . .

. . . Food Court!

Moderation in all things is my motto.

Seriously, after nearly six
months living near Milan we
are going into this store?

We both completely agree
  
It was a well stocked store

We bought a serving plate at an unreasonable price by Italian standards but Laurie was happy.

"Yes, dear."

Mary and Laurie showing off
their Fiesta flowers

Football Saturday at Buena H.S.

This first photo is from the J.V. vs. Frosh scrimmage.

I served as an assistant coach at Buena for three seasons from  2001 to 2003.

 The Bulldogs Varsitin action

The Bulldogs played with great enthusiasm and were fun to watch.

Dr. Alex Garfio

Alex was a great RB for the Bulldogs back in 2001 and 2002 and went on to play for UC Davis and the Seville Linces in Spain.

He is currently an Assistant Athletic Director at USC.

I won't hold that against him.

What a great young man. 

Buena Head Coach Ryan Bolland

Ryan was a Strong Safety for us at Buena in 2002 and 2003.

After graduating from Notre Dame, he joined me in the Summer of 2010 to coach the Hässleholm Hurricanes in Sweden and we coached together again at Rio Mesa H.S. in 2011 and 2012.

This will be Ryan's second year at the helm of the Buena Bulldogs.

What a great young man.

Tuesday at Newbury Park's practice

 It was their first day in pads

Fundamentals was the order of the day

The first day in pads combined with near 100° temperatures made for a hard workout.

Why are the Varese Skorpions
in Washington D.C.?

Simple really, tonight at halftime of . . .
  
. . . the Rams vs. Ravens pre-season
NFL game they have been invited
to exhibit their flag football skills

If you recall, our U15 flag team won the Italian National Championship this year and U17s brought home the Bronze medal in their National Tournament.

What an amazing experience for the young Skorpions. 
  
Speaking of amazing experiences . . .

Our son Mike, who will be our LB coach, and I head to beautiful Chihuahua, Mexico this Saturday for a week of Europe Warriors football as we prepare to play against the University of Chihuahua Águilas on August 18th.

Reading Is FUNdamental

The 11th installment of Walker's
"Bruno, Chief of Police" mysteries
did not disappoint

As usual this latest effort was equal parts murder, cuisine and French culture.

A good read indeed!

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