A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

weekend

Summer dwindles fast

It’s Friday.

Unfortunately, this Friday is the start of the end of the summer. In the States, Labor Day weekend usually signifies the end of the summer season, despite it not officially ending for another few weeks. But kids head back to school next week (if they aren’t already there), colleges are in full swing and the weather starts to (usually) switch to cooler temps.

This has been one heck of a summer, but where did it go?

I’ve seen a lot of baseball and had the chance to travel a little. I haven’t done as many geocaches as I would have liked, but that’s OK.

Baseball was the theme this summer and it really was in full swing. As of this writing, I have been to 60 games and I’m still holding out hope that I can reach 70 games – depending on how the playoff schedule for minor league teams goes.

But, even if I don’t reach that, I had just been hoping to hit 50 this year. With double headers and a couple of fun baseball trips, it worked out better than I could have expected.

I am sure the fall will be busy, but wow, the summer went by quick.

How about all of you? Was your summer great? Do you have any Labor Day plans? Either way, have a great Friday and a great weekend!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook!

On the geocaching trail: Planning a fun weekend

I’m ready for a weekend of geocaching… and hopefully many finds occur!

Hey folks.

I know I’ve been pretty hit or miss for the past several weeks, but with work and softball and everything else, I’ve had no drive to blog. I’m so beat at night thanks to this crazy heat we’ve been having.

Blah.

Anyway, for the first time since starting the summer gig, I have a few extra days off. I put in for this weekend as it’s the Berkshire Geobash, a mega event in its second year. I went last year and wanted to hit it up again.

Of course it’s supposed to be hot this weekend, which kind of stinks. I was hoping for some partially sunny skies with a high of around 70. I would have been stoked.

But no…

Mother Nature doesn’t seem to want to cooperate, of course.

For Saturday (from the National Weather Service):

Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 2pm. Some of the storms could produce small hail, gusty winds, and heavy rain. Partly sunny, with a high near 84. West wind 8 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

For Saturday night:

Saturday Night Showers and thunderstorms likely before 9pm, then a slight chance of showers between 9pm and 3am. Some of the storms could produce small hail, gusty winds, and heavy rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 63. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Seriously? I get a weekend off and I have to deal with this? Of course Sunday looks nice and Friday (when two of us are heading down) look decent. But Saturday…

Ugh. Hopefully that will change some.

Either way, I have a lot of caches planned. I haven’t sat down and planned a caching trip like this in a while, so it’s been pretty fun. I have the lists broken up into days and such, so hopefully we’ll be able to get most of them. There are more than 100 on the list for two days, so we’ll see.

Some of the highlights include:

  • Seeing nine covered bridges (four in New York, five in Vermont);
  • Two events (originally three or four, but we’ve opted to skip one or two for other items);
  • Several puzzle caches, which have already been solved;
  • Some challenging caches with different terrain/difficulty ratings;
  • A few cooler caches with more than 50 favorite points.

I’ve also continued the releasing of my coin collection (I’m creating proxy releases as the originals stay in the collection, but they are out moving and such) and will have more than 15 I am releasing this weekend. That’s one thing I’m truly excited about. I’ll drop them in different spots throughout the weekend.

In the end, I’m looking forward to getting away and doing some geocaching. It hasn’t been a great summer for caching for me as I had eight finds in June and I’ve had one in July.

One.

So I’m looking to make amends.

Last year, this event was quite fun. There were quite a lot of things to do and I look forward to the same this year. I hope there are good vendors to check out and, of course, great caches.

I’m also planning on taking a bunch of photos (I rented a lens) with my regular camera as well as with the iPhone, which I’ll be posting to Instagram, Tumblr and Twitter throughout the weekend. Feel free to follow me on any of those networks!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

The weekend has arrived…

This is going to be one busy weekend.

Today is supposed to be one of my book review posts for the challenge I am in. Alas, it’s not written. I’m going to have to do something I hate to do and be late with it. I haven’t finished the artwork and just am not in the mood to write a review. I should have done it weeks ago when I finished the book. Alas, I slacked.

I’ve, unfortunately, slacked a little too much in that challenge. I haven’t commented enough on other reviews and I’m mad at myself about that. I plan on rectifying that for this month’s selections.

Anyway, back to the weekend.

It starts today with the Relay for Life. I’ve blogged a bit about that, so I’m sure most readers know about it. I won’t go into the full plea, but you still have time to give and have a chance to win a super sweet quilt. The Relay is a really good event and many people in the community come out for it. But it’s also a little smaller than in the past. Things go in cycles, though.

I relay in the memory and honor of those close to me who have passed or have battled cancer. And to raise money, which is what it’s all about.

Our local one runs quite long (more than 14 hours), so many people don’t stay the full night anymore. I know I won’t be able to do it as I have plans for the rest of the weekend. The few years I tried to pull the all-night thing, I ended up being so exhausted, my whole weekend was ruined. I realize we’re doing a good thing, but my feeling is this — we raise money. That’s the good deed. Walking around a track all night or playing games isn’t what it’s about.

And our team — of seven people — has raised more than $2,200 for the cause. Hopefully we’ll be beyond the $2,500 mark by tomorrow night. In the end, that’s what I’m most proud of. Raising money.

****

Saturday is going to be a geocaching day.

Two of us are heading down toward the Kingston area to do a newer “power” trail. In all, I have made a list of more than 65 caches. On that list are mainly traditional caches, but a few mystery ones are thrown in. One of those is a night cache.

OK, let me explain a couple of things. A power trail is one where it’s set up for people to get a higher count of finds on a certain stretch of a trail or road. This trail is about 30 caches in about a 12-mile stretch of road. There are a lot of different things and, apparently, some really nice scenery. So I look forward to taking the camera and maybe getting some good shots.

At a night cache a few years ago.

The other thing is the night cache. For those who are casual cachers or don’t cache, a night geocache is set up where you have coordinates to the beginning. Then you follow fire tacks to the cache. It’s really quite cool. This one is supposed to be pretty nice, so I’m looking forward to getting out and finding it. It should be a nice cap to the day/night.

I haven’t had a “big” caching day in a while, so I’m excited about this one. We’ll be all over as the list, as of now, is just shy of 70 caches. We might not get them all, but we’ll give it a go. The fun part will be dropping one geocoin in a place to help its journey. I look forward to the overall day and fun that it should bring.

****

On Sunday, I’ll be heading to Pennsylvania for some disc golf. That is, as long as nothing else comes up. It’s not as far as it might sound as the back roads will get me there quicker. It’s actually only 68 miles.

Ready to play some disc golf.

This course is 12 holes and is supposed to be really good.

So my plan is to hopefully play it two — maybe three — times and then head home. On the way, I plan on picking up 5-10 geocaches, too. I’m not usually a fan of caching solo, but some of these caches are in the middle of no where or some older cemeteries, so I don’t mind as much.

With the weather looking good, I’m just excited to get out and throw some plastic and find a few treasures along the way.

****

A couple of weeks ago, I had a phone interview. It was for a job I would consider a “dream job.” I was pretty amped to get the interview (though, to be fair, phone interviews are so hard. You can’t read people and they can’t read you. I’d rather be face-to-face as it gives you a better chance to deal with things as they come along.)

In the end, it didn’t turn out so well.

In my own mind, there were parts I knew I didn’t do well on. But, at the same time, I thought I answered several questions well and thought my experiences were a perfect match. Alas, it didn’t work out. I didn’t make the final three and didn’t get a face-to-face interview.

The same day, however, I received a call for another job. While it would just be for the summer, it would be an enjoyable job where I can hopefully learn a few things. I have the interview (face-to-face) next weekend, so I’ll look forward to seeing if I fare better when I get to talk in person.

The first situation, though, is why I am excited to have a busy weekend. This job hunt — and as long as it’s been — takes a toll on you. It really taxes you mentally and physically, so sometimes you need a busy and fun weekend to let your mind wander in other places. Hopefully this weekend will help me clear my mind and get back at it next week.

Here’s to hoping you all have a great weekend as well!

Fundraiser: I am, again, trying to raise money for the Relay For Life. If you donate to me — a minimum of $5– you will be entered to win a super-sweet quilted lap quilt or pillow. Click here for all the information!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog [at] gmail.com. Also, please “Like” HooHaa Blog on Facebook!

 

Everybody’s working for the weekend…

Ah yes, the weekend is upon us, isn’t it?

I am spending my Friday working, to an extent. It’s work for me, anyway. I have a goal of sending out five applications today and I have a pretty good start on it, so I’m taking a small break to write my daily blog post. The cover letters are starting to flow a little better today, so that’s good. Maybe I’ll start hearing back from some of these places. The big thing is tweaking the resume a little for each gig.

Ahh well, enough of the job stuff.

What’s on the calendar for the weekend for all of you?

The weather here is supposed to be cold. Brrr. In the mid-to-upper 30s, but sunny. So that’s not too bad. Still, I’m ready for spring to be here. I could even deal with temps in the high 40s for a little while. At least that makes me think spring. As I look outside now, it’s been back and forth between sun and clouds and some snow flurries and squalls.

Spring sure would be welcome.

Still, this weekend seems to have a few things on tap.

Originally, this weekend was supposed to be our fantasy baseball draft. Some people had things Saturday and some Sunday. So we pushed it back to next weekend, which comes after the season starts — but that’s OK.

So, time to re-plan.

Today, I’m finishing these applications and probably going to throw a few discs to practice a little bit. I’m hoping the weather kicks in soon as I’d like to hit a few courses and start playing some disc golf. With the days being longer with light, it’s easy enough to put in the job stuff for several hours in the morning and early afternoon and then head out to play a round or two of disc golf.

The annual road rally in our area is Saturday, so I think I am going to head to Walton on Saturday and watch some cars buzzing around the back roads. I haven’t taken photos in a while, so it would be nice to take some shots, especially with my camera and zoom lens back from Canon. I’m excited to get snapping again, but some better weather would be nice to really push me to get out and shoot. That and finding some new spots. I can only take so many photos of the local covered bridges… and I love covered bridges!

On Sunday, I’ll head to the annual March baseball card show in White Plains. Unfortunately, I won’t be in a position to spend too much, but I think I can afford to split a box of cards with the person going with me and maybe grab a few odds and ends that I’ve been looking for/at. I haven’t done much by way of cards recently, so it will be nice to see some new products.

… I’d also like to kind of get mine all together and in holders, too. Some of my more recent finds haven’t been put in holders, so I’d like to do that and get it all set. Then maybe I can do what I’ve wanted to do for a while and that’s organize my cards somewhere online so I know what I have etc.

My hopes for Sunday:

  • A few bargain game-used or authentic autographed Phillies cards
  • Game-used or autographed cards of players I used to cover when they played in Oneonta (or other teams).
  • A hobby box of cards

As many who know I collect know, I don’t look at these as an investment of sorts (though if I need to sell down the line, I hope they sell well!), it’s more of a collection of certain players and cards that I want to nab.

Hopefully I can land some at decent prices.

Maybe I can even grab a cache or two on the way down to White Plains or on the way back. That would be nice as well. Even a park-and-grab or two would work for me.

That’s my weekend — how about you?

More later!