Reno Day 3

Here is my sleeping beauty getting ready to rise and shine

We loaded up into the car for a little road trip. We headed south to Virginia City, onto Carson City and then over the Sierra Nevada's to South Lake Tahoe. There is still a lot of haze in the sky from wild fires in the area.

Here's my sleeping beauty sitting on the beach at the edge of Lake Tahoe enjoying her Mocha.

This looks like fun...NOT. Why would you rent a canoe when there are power boats you can rent? VAAAROOOOM...

This is Emerald Cove on the west side of Lake Tahoe.

I just can't express how much smoke there is in the air, just heard on the local news that there are a estimated over 1000 wildfires burning up in this area! WOW..

Reno Day 2

We are staying here at the Atlantis. The Atlantis is less than a 1/4 mile walk next door to the Reno/Sparks Convention Center.
Their presently building at cat walk over to the Convention Center

We walked over to the Convention Center, got inside and were very impressed.
They have all the latest technology setup and have all results posted in the internet almost immediately.

The convention center is just one of 8 or 9 venues that is used in the city. I think there is something like 172 courts setup at the convention center alone. This is the main court at the convention center, this is where the finals are played and they will be nationally televised.

Courts and more courtsCourts for as far as you can see. The place is very well laided out and a lot of maps are posted to help you get where you want to go.

The girls at play. We did not have a very good day, four days to go!

After you play you get to help officiate the next games.

The Volleyball Festival offers...

• The Largest Annual Sporting Event In The World
• National Junior Invitational Championships
• Girls Teams From All Over The United States (Ages 12 & under - 18)
• Guaranteed 13 Matches In Five Days
• Competition At Multiple Levels
• Fabulous Opening Ceremony
• Nationally Televised Finals

Reno Day 1

We are on a five (5) day trip to Reno for a volleyball tournament/vacation.
We left Saturday morning bright and early, needed to be in Reno by noon.
We stopped in Auburn, Ca. Had breakfast and fueled up.
Auburn was established in 1848, it's one of California's earliest gold mining towns.
We had breakfast here at "Mary Belle's."

Across the street was the post office.

This is the original fire department and town bell.

Entering into the town of Auburn is this statue of a gold miner. I was checking his pan out for any left over gold!The next two pictures is an example of the scenery that we see from our room. We are staying at the Atlantis in Reno. The sky is very hazy from the wild fires that are burning nearby in the Sierra Nevada mountains some 30 miles from Reno.Not too hazy tho...pool side from our room!

Happy Father's Day

The History of Father's Day Father's Day, contrary to popular misconception, was not established as a holiday in order to help greeting card manufacturers sell more cards. In fact when a "father's day" was first proposed there were no Father's Day cards!

Mrs. John B. Dodd, of Washington, first proposed the idea of a "father's day" in 1909. Mrs. Dodd wanted a special day to honor her father, William Smart. William Smart, a Civil War veteran, was widowed when his wife (Mrs. Dodd's mother) died in childbirth with their sixth child. Mr. Smart was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself on a rural farm in eastern Washington state.

It was after Mrs. Dodd became an adult that she realized the strength and selflessness her father had shown in raising his children as a single parent.

The first Father's Day was observed on June 19, 1910 in Spokane Washington. At about the same time in various towns and cities across American other people were beginning to celebrate a "father's day."

In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge supported the idea of a national Father's Day. Finally in 1966 President Lyndon Johnson signed a presidential proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father's Day.

Father's Day has become a day to not only honor your father, but all men who act as a father figure. Stepfathers, uncles, grandfathers, and adult male friends are all honored on Father's Day.

Flag Day

The History Of Flag Day

The Fourth of July was traditionally celebrated as America's birthday, but the idea of an annual day specifically celebrating the Flag is believed to have first originated in 1885. BJ Cigrand, a schoolteacher, arranged for the pupils in the Fredonia, Wisconsin Public School, District 6, to observe June 14 (the 108th anniversary of the official adoption of The Stars and Stripes) as 'Flag Birthday'. In numerous magazines and newspaper articles and public addresses over the following years, Cigrand continued to enthusiastically advocate the observance of June 14 as 'Flag Birthday', or 'Flag Day'.

On June 14, 1889, George Balch, a kindergarten teacher in New York City, planned appropriate ceremonies for the children of his school, and his idea of observing Flag Day was later adopted by the State Board of Education of New York. On June 14, 1891, the Betsy Ross House in Philadelphia held a Flag Day celebration, and on June 14 of the following year, the New York Society of the Sons of the Revolution, celebrated Flag Day.

Following the suggestion of Colonel J Granville Leach (at the time historian of the Pennsylvania Society of the Sons of the Revolution), the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames of America on April 25, 1893 adopted a resolution requesting the mayor of Philadelphia and all others in authority and all private citizens to display the Flag on June 14th. Leach went on to recommend that thereafter the day be known as 'Flag Day', and on that day, school children be assembled for appropriate exercises, with each child being given a small Flag.

Two weeks later on May 8th, the Board of Managers of the Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution unanimously endorsed the action of the Pennsylvania Society of Colonial Dames. As a result of the resolution, Dr. Edward Brooks, then Superintendent of Public Schools of Philadelphia, directed that Flag Day exercises be held on June 14, 1893 in Independence Square. School children were assembled, each carrying a small Flag, and patriotic songs were sung and addresses delivered.

In 1894, the governor of New York directed that on June 14 the Flag be displayed on all public buildings. With BJ Cigrand and Leroy Van Horn as the moving spirits, the Illinois organization, known as the American Flag Day Association, was organized for the purpose of promoting the holding of Flag Day exercises. On June 14th, 1894, under the auspices of this association, the first general public school children's celebration of Flag Day in Chicago was held in Douglas, Garfield, Humboldt, Lincoln, and Washington Parks, with more than 300,000 children participating.

Adults, too, participated in patriotic programs. Franklin K. Lane, Secretary of the Interior, delivered a 1914 Flag Day address in which he repeated words he said the flag had spoken to him that morning: "I am what you make me; nothing more. I swing before your eyes as a bright gleam of color, a symbol of yourself."

Inspired by these three decades of state and local celebrations, Flag Day - the anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777 - was officially established by the Proclamation of President Woodrow Wilson on May 30th, 1916. While Flag Day was celebrated in various communities for years after Wilson's proclamation, it was not until August 3rd, 1949, that President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th of each year as National Flag Day.

International Union of Operating Engineers

The International Union of Operating Engineer's which I'm a member, held it's semi annual business meeting today. I rode down to the Union Hall in downtown Los Angeles, then made an all day ride out of it.

On the way down to Los Angeles from Bakersfield you pass by Pyramid Lake, it's at 3000' elevation

Pyramid Lake is a lake formed by Pyramid Dam on Piru Creek, near Castaic, California. The 386 foot (118 m) tall earth and rock dam was built by the California Department of Water Resources and was completed in 1973. Pyramid Lake is part of the California Aqueduct, which is part of the California State Water Project. Downstream is Castaic Lake, which is the terminus of the west branch of the aqueduct. Pyramid and Castaic act as the upper and lower reservoirs for a 1,495 megawatt pumped storage hydroelectric plant. It is the deepest lake in the California Water Project system. Its name comes from the Pyramid Rock, created when a ridge was cut through in 1932 by the Ridge Route Alternate (US 99). Pyramid Rock still exists directly in front of the dam.I arrived at the Hall around 11:00 A.M. This is a mural that was painted on the side of the Hall.The "rat" is an epithet used to describe a non-union contractor, a large inflatable rat is set up outside the offending job site.Here's the "Rat" looking over the barbecue that was put on for all that attended.I guessed that there was 150-200 members that showed. I talk to a couple of members that came in from Las Vegas. There was maybe 20 or so motorcycles that rode in.I was the "Lone Wolf" that rode down from Bakersfield.When I left the Union Hall I headed west, my intention was to get to the coast then ride north up the coast. Between where I was and where I was going, I ran into the Farmers Market of Los Angeles.
In July 1934 a contingent of farmers pulled their trucks onto an expanse of empty land at the property known as Gilmore Island at the corner of Third and Fairfax in Los Angeles. They displayed their produce on the tailgates of their vehicles, to their delight; customers quickly arrived and parked their cars on a hastily created dirt parking lot in spaces designated with chalk. They strolled among the trucks purchasing fruit, vegetables and flowers.The Clock Tower, shown here, was relocated to its current location in the plaza in 2002. A time capsule was embedded within the stone base so future generations of Angelenos can catch a glimpse of the Farmers Market at the turn of the millenium.Just happened that a car show was going on , so I took a short stroll and took a few pictures.I finally found the Pacific Coast Highway and headed north, here is the Santa Monica pierOld BMW, very clean.I took Malibu Canyon Road East off the Pacific Coast Highway. I somehow had the impression that this road was a desirable ride, man was I mistaken, it was car after car. I should have stayed down by the coast.

Click on the above picture to enlarge, you'll see all the cars!