A Gift, a Tree and the Start of the 2020 Husky Football season

 

Sunday-Monday, Nov. 8-16, 2020

Lots of little things happened this past week that kept things interesting in the greater Camarillo megalopolis.

First there were the usual witty sayings from the internet.

I hit that age YEARS ago

Isn't that the truth

Our self-imposed pandemic lockdown has not helped on the diet front.

On Tuesday, I had a fun Zoom meeting

with Varese Skorpions coaches and players

Our topic was "The Lead Play in American Football."

Basic but interesting if you are into this sort of thing.

There is a new American football league that has just started playing called simply The Spring League. Of course they are playing in the Fall.

Due to the pandemic they are playing all of their games in a bubble around San Antonio, Texas' Alamo Dome.

The teams have only nicknames, no city names at all at this time.

Two of our former Europe Warriors who played for us in our Senior team game in Chihuahua, Mexico in 2018 are playing for The Spring League's Generals team!

Both of them are Spaniards.

Daniel Docal is a Generals DB

While Mario Flores is a Generals WR

What a GREAT adventure for both of these young men!

Again with my weight gaining issues

I took a long walk outside 

through the Camarillo Outlet 

Mall early one morning

What happened to Thanksgiving?

Christmas it is in the Mall

Italy, Sweet Italy

Speaking of which, I got a present from Italy this week thanks to Skorpion LB/DL turned OL, Ivan "Swito" Raso, and his wonderful significant other, Chiara Lodi Silvio.

He sent me this fun poster from

one of the best moments of the 2019

season when Swito won the Game Hammer

Chiara sent me this 

fun Lego key chain

Need a closer look?

COOL!

Laurie says that it is me but I don't see the resemblance.

Do you?

When we first moved into our home in Camarillo in 1976, there were three pine trees growing in the ivy in the front yard.

Over the years, two of them died and were summarily cut down.

The lone survivor was not looking good so we made the decision to have it chopped down as well.

Laurie called a professional landscaper to come and cut it down and haul it away for us.

One last look

They lassoed the top of the tree

on their first throw

PULLING HARD!

TIMBER!!!

They hauled away the chopped up

trunk and wood chipped the branches

It took them about 30 minutes from start to finish.

How old was that tree?

I offered to cut down the tree

myself but Laurie had this vision . . .

I still yearned for desserts after

a hard afternoon of watching

our lumberjacks at work

Even though I had my face mask,

I opted not to enter this store

Their attitude was a bit disconcerting.

I did get Laurie an almond

croissant the next morning

at Cafe Ficelle

It had a LOT of powdered sugar

Ah the weekend when this

becomes a reality

Mike and Mary on our Saturday

morning walk

Mary is a Dancing MACHINE!

At 8:00 p.m. Pacific time on Saturday

it was finally the start of the 2020

Season for our Washington Huskies

The Huskies (0-0) were at home against the Oregon State Beavers (0-1).

It was the first time that the Huskies opened a season against the Beavers since 1918 when the were known as the Oregon Agricultural College. That game was also played in mid-November due to, you guessed it, the Spanish flu pandemic.

In 1918, the Huskies won that game at home 6-0 on the way to a final 1-1 season record.

The Dawgs would lose in Seattle to te Oregon Ducks 0-7 the following weekend.

  

1-0!

It was 24-21 at the half when I finally fell asleep watching the game. I didn't miss much action in the Second Half it appears.

College Football Playoffs HERE WE COME!

I may be a bit premature on this though.

Mary giving me the Evil Eye

on Sunday morning

That's MUCH sweeter

As usual, we made pancakes

together Sunday

Mary sat with me while I broke

down practice video from Spain's

Pioners L'Hospitalet in Barcelona

Mary making goo-goo-googley eyes

Jacob at the park before the Rams game

Jacob as a Human Sacrifice

to the Great Gods of the NFL

for a Rams win?

Jacob donned my spectacles

to look more like his beloved

cousin Kevin in Las Vegas

BIG GAME!

Seattle Seahawks 6-2

at

Los Angeles Rams 5-3

We all rooted the Rams on to a . . .

HUGE VICTORY!

The tough NFC West now looks like this:

Los Angeles Rams 6-3

Arizona Cardinals 6-3

Seattle Seahawks 6-3

San Francisco 49ers 4-6

Next up for the Rams is yet another tough one on November 23rd at the Tom Brady led Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-3).

As the Second Wave of the Pandemic continues to wreak havoc all over the USA and Europe, all of you STAY SAFE!