How often have you been at a sporting event when some goofball mascot pulls down the pants of the umpire or douses the ref with a bucket of water. At the AAA All Star Game in Albuquerque, this umpire shows up the bird-like mascot.

(Here's the kicker: that's not a real umpire.)

It wasn’t planned, but in one week, we have been to two famous Route 66 destinations: Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., and now Albuquerque, NM. Because it was rather hot in California, we didn’t get to explore that portion of Rte. 66, but we did get to explore the famous highway in New Mexico. Know as Central Avenue, in the area known as Nob Hill (no relation to the neighborhood of the same name in San Francisco), the area we visited was lined with hip restaurants, converted gas stations, galleries and even a Starbucks built to fit the area.

Beale Street is modified Bourbon Street after dark. Here’s a street artist who does spray paint work (enamel, and it stinks) on the sidewalk by the Pepsi Pavilion.

Welcome to Memphis. It’s hot, humid and the smell of barbecue is in the air.

 

We’re here for the first ever Civil Rights Baseball Game (Cardinals vs. Indians) on Saturday, but we’ll be soaking up the scene til gametime: music, food, Graceland, Stax Records Civil Right Museum and even the Peabody ducks.

 

 

 

Set to the Podsafe version of "London Bridge" by Duwayne A Wright, here's a blend of some clips from six days in London.

En route back to our hotel via the Circle Line, we came across this musician who was playing "The Girl From Ipanema." Rather well, I'd say.

One of the highlights of our trip to the UK in July was a visit to the Borough Market, a spectacular farmers market and food mecca. We returned this trip, but this time with a better videocamera.

The sun, the sea air, the smell of grilled fish in the air… Yes, I have to say, Cannes, in the south of France, is really splendid. There is a promenade along the sea with restaurants, folks out for a stroll, artists and musicians. Here is a quick clip of one such duo.

Let’s see… I let my home at 10:45 am local time and 23 hours later, I am at/on (not sure which is correct) The French Riviera. Cannes, to be exact. It’s my first time here and it’s a bit overwhelming as you travel across time and space. Here’s a brief look at the Cannes seascape from outside my hotel. I learned my lesson from my last European adventure—my JVC Everio is locked in the safe. For short video adventures, the pocket-sized Point & Shoot Camcorder is the tool of choice. Lots more to come.

Back in March, when we attended the World Baseball Classic in San Diego, we happened upon the great Hillcrest Market. We are in town to see Dylan perform, so we went back to the market and were entertained by the 7^th Day Buskers. And we were pleased to see pluots still are in season.

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It was a long-anticipated videoblogging event: The Duck Derby at Kiwanis Park in Tempe. And sure it was hot (101) and the race was slow (40 minutes), but the cause (Make A Wish) is a great one, and we had 15 rubber duckies in the race. The winner (which we weren’t) received a new Chevy and even the runner-ups prizes (which we also didn’t win) were good, ranging from airline tickets to an overnight at Casino Arizona.

Big kudos to Mark Lewis, a local TV personality who was the emcee and kept everyone entertained in the blazing sun with some funny banter.

On of the highlights of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Pittsburgh was the parade that introduced the players. After the caravan of stars (a few of whom have been traded in the past few days) made its way over The Roberto Clemente Bridge, fans followed. Here’s an enterprising “street performer” who is perched on the bridge playing the sax.

As we rode the tram back to our hotel in Amsterdam, I couldn't help but think of how Amsterdam's Jews were hoarded onto trams in the early 1940s by the Nazis. It was their first step on the way to concentration camps where they were put to death.

After a long day of going back and forth to the US Consulate to get new passports, we finally had some time to relax and do one of the touristy things in Amsterdam we had our sights set on: a canal boat cruise.

Well, without a doubt, our time in Amsterdam was filled with highs and lows. Despite everything, our time at the Amsterdam Historich Museum seeing Anne Frank, Her Life in Letters, and then later a visit to the Anne Frank Huis (Anne Frank House) was a lasting memory. Everyone–not only Jews–should visit the Anne Frank House; it will not only change your perspective on history, it will change you perspective on modern events.

Thanks to Time Out's list of best fish & chips in London, we located The Golden Hind, a Greek-owned place not far from the Bond Street Station (Tube stop). We had time for one such meal, and it was excellent. In fact, the cod we had wasn't deep friend (as it tradionally is served); ours was steamed. And mushy peas? Yowzer!

Thanks to some nasty weather last night in London, as well as some nasty employees at BMI (British Midland), we arrived at Heathrow two hours late. Because of massive delays, baggage took another hour. To top it off, the taxi line was even longer than the lines at CES. We arrived at our hotel around 3 am. Nonetheless, we were up at a reasonable hour and headed off for a final day of adventure.

Ah yes, life (and video) is more than baseball. Really. On our quick trip to Cleveland, we took the RTA out to the West Side Market. While it’s supposed to be at its peak on Saturdays that might be a tight squeeze as we head home late tomorrow morning. In addition to the produce stands on the outside portion, there are permanent stalls inside the building that contain bakeries, meat and poultry markets, spice shops and even more.

Ok, call me a homer, but while Cleveland’s West Side Market is great, I have to say I like Philadelphia’s Reading Terminal a bit better. Where else can you find chocolate-covered licorice and world-class sticky buns?

Our sports fantasy week ends in Cleveland. No, the Indians are not home (drat!), but we made our way over to Jacobs Field to visit the fan shop and peek inside this crown jewel. Drew Carey Bobblehead Night is coming, as is retro alarm clock give-away night; maybe we’ll be back?

Earlier this year, I created a controversial video called “Why I Hate LA.” Who knew so many people were so passionate about LA? Well, I lived and worked in the Bay Area from 1993-2001 and loved it. I still do. So, in my NoCal versus SoCal clash, here’s my short homage to San Francisco. Take that LA!

Warm weather means music outside, and here’s a dude playing the fiddle on the corner of Market and Ellis in San Francisco.

We cannot visit California without a trip to a farmers market. This one, San Diego’s Hillcrest Farmers Market, is open 9 am-1 pm Sundays, rain nor shine. We liked it even better than the ones in Ocean Beach and Carlsbad in terms of variety of produce and assorted food products.

 

In addition to blood oranges, radishes and other transportable fare, we purchased tea and spices at Conscious Cookery, a small yet stellar stand with a variety of spices, teas, beans and dried corn products. I see that the owner of the stand also has a blog that is very well done.

 

We’ll be back—and next time we'll bring more money.

I hate LA. I always have, and suspect I always will.

Reasons? The traffic, the smog, the $60/one hour cab ride from the airport, the plastic people, mindless conversations about long work commutes, oddball posers on the street, the pretense…and did I mention the traffic? And how can you like a place that recognizes the talent of the Olsen Twins by rewarding them with a Star on the Walk of Fame. And what's there to like about the Dodgers and/or The Lakers?

Podsafe music is "Lost Angeles" by Berman.

 

 

I have traveled eight of the first 18 days of 2006, and it can wear you down. I wanted to share a glimpse of what a four-day trip looks like. It’s group meals, generic hotel rooms with paper-thin walls, lots of discussions (sometimes poignant), airports, waiting in line, taxi cabs and more waiting in line.

The Podsafe music is from Phillip Flathead, and it’s “The Ballad of Timothy Leary.”

You can't let the raindrops wreck your day if you're in San Francisco for a few days. Here's a short clip of the action down at one of the city's great magnets for tourism-- Fisherman's Wharf.

 

No trip to San Francisco is complete for my family without a trip to Isobune—aka “the boat sushi” restaurant. Located smack in the middle of Japantown, on Post Street, Isobune is the first conveyor belt sushi restaurant in the U.S. The wait for a table can run as much as a few hours; today, we only had to wait 20 minutes.

 

The sushi comes around on colored plates, each one with a different color border. Each color represents a price per plate. We have spent more than $100 at Isobune, but today we got away for about half that. But then again, it was only lunch.

 

 

Not to rub it in to those shivering masses, but we wandered down to the farmers market in Central Phoenix (Central & McKinley Sts. To be specific) in 75-degree weather. Forgetting to move my new JVC camcorder from picture mode back to video mode, all I captured with my new gadget was one picture. Luckily, I pulled out my Sanyo Xacti and shot some footage of a a duet performing at the market.

You will notice my conversation with an admirer of my cool Xacti. Pays to have multiple video cameras on one’s person

After a year and a half of waiting, we finally got to the Barrio Café for dinner. It has been voted the best Mexican restaurant in Phoenix, and indeed it’s worthy of the honor. Here’s one of the restaurant’s great charms—tableside preparation of guacamole.

 

Yes, I know my camera is low-light challenged. I am working on that….

 

 

Note:

After eight months of videoblogging, I have decided to duplicate my videos on a site dedicated to videoblogging—What’s On Tonight: The Videoblog. I have tried to embed the videos on this site, but (as much as I love Blogware) it appears semi-impossible. The embedded player is crucial because my MPEG-4 videos are challenging for many people to see.

If there’s a funky dog event being held anywhere within driving distance of our home, it looks like we’re there. Today, we went to the second annual Reindoggie Parade in downtown Scottsdale. Dogs and their owners from all over the area, dressed in their best holiday costumes, came to the Hilton Village parking lot to compete. I think the winners in the various categories got some sort of trophy (presented by Scottsdale Mayor Mary Manross), but we didn’t stick around for that.

 

 

Here's another clip from the dog agility show from last week at Westworld in Scottsdale. A Japanese competitor in the Ashley Whippet Flying Disc competition puts her dog through the paces. My wife and I actually once met the Ashley Whippet; that's a story for another day.

After last year’s posting of pictures from the Dock Dogs event at Westworld here in Scottsdale, I was psyched to come back in 2005 at shoot video. So, on Veterans Day, we made our way to the U.S. Dog Agility Association event in which the amazing diving dogs were featured.

 

It’s a long clip, but it’s worth all six-plus minutes. The star of the show is Gabe, a flying Border Collie who is owned by and trained by Todd Bobula of Dayon, Nevada. I spoke to Todd for a minute after the event and the bond between man and dog was remarkable. The announcer said (and he might have been joking) that Gabe delivers invoices to customers’ doors for Todd as part of his business. I would not be surprised. The other star of the day is actually Gabe’s son, Bolt, who flies just like his dad. Another member of the Bobula clan handles Bolt.

 

Today was the second day of heats (or waves, as they call them) with the finals on Sunday afternoon.

 

As promised, here’s a more in-depth look at The New York Marathon. A few postscript notes: It was cool to see the number of people walking around New York in the subsequent days proudly displaying their old medals (indicating they finished the race).  Also, on my flight from LGA (New York) to DEN (Denver), there was a woman who was inured in the race. She had to be taken on board in some sort of device that slides down the aisle and literally delivers the injured party to his/her seat. I tried to hear her tell her tale of woe, but the noise of the 757 muffled her comments.

 

Shooting video at the New York City Marathon was, so far, the highlight of my eight months of videoblogging. The best thing about it is that the clips need very little explanation. Here are two clips that speak for themselves. I will string a bunch together into a “movie” with titles when I have access to my PowerBook and the wonderful iMovie application.

 

Here’s a gratuitous night shot of Times Square in New York. Actually, I am constantly testing the light limits of my Sanyo Xacti so I can establish whether I need a camera with more low-light functionality. It would be a tradeoff unless I could get a higher-end camera that was as small and nimble as my Sanyo.