Team Bocce Outing at Pinstripes

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We had a team outing at Pinstripes where we had a few bocce lanes (?) reserved. I wasn’t even sure how to play, but Rudy quick Googled it for us. It was fun. I forgot that Pinstripes opened in Chicago proper. Before this, I’d only been to the one in Oak Brook.

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My dad was babysitting because Dallas was traveling for work all week. When I got home that night I had this greeting on the front sidewalk!

Wisconsin Barbecue


Milo resting in the shade.


Quarter keg of Spotted Cow.


Rock and Jeff


Richard and Brian


Shorty.


Shorty again. We debated how old he is… 13? 15?


Jason and Jessica


Jessica and Jason


Brian, Sheila, Ashley playing beersbee


Richard and Rock playing beersbee


Fire pit, where the play gym used to be.

Over the weekend my brother had a barbecue at his house. I hadn’t been up to his house for a visit since Christmas, so I wanted to make sure to go. The weather was a little hot at first, but then cooled to comfortable temperature. I played a game of bocce with Jess and played bags with my brother and his friends. Steph had band until 3 and then invited a few friends over. Like typical teenagers, they mostly hung around each other, away from the rest of the party, except when Sheila infiltrated every now and then! My brother and his friends also played beersbee, which I thought at first was the frisbie game, but is not. My brother accidentally made the hamburgers, frisbee style, the way my dad makes them, but redid the batch. Those frisbee burgers would have worked out well for the beersbee game! It was fun to hang out and relax and meet some more of my brother’s friends.

Hanging Out in Sausalito

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Dallas and I have each travelled around the Bay Area for work and have done all of the standard touristy things and have seen many of the sights. For something different one day Billy & Ging took us to Sausalito, which is just north of San Francisco. Sausalito is an area I always wanted to check out anyway, so it worked out good.

For lunch we went to Bar Bocce, a place that Billy and Ging had been with friends before. The weather was a little chilly, but Bar Bocce’s great outside space had a lot of heaters, so that was not a problem. I had the shrimp po’boy made with Bay shrimp and Dallas had some New England-style clam chowder. Dallas had leftover Thanksgiving kalbi and katsu for breakfast and wasn’t that hungry so he only had garlic bread with his soup. Oh, I also had some salt cod fritters with aioli.

I thought all the food was good. And the view of the piers with the sailboats docked was awesome. The cool thing about Bar Bocce is that you can play bocce while you wait for your food. So we did. Except Dallas. Party pooper. I discovered a secret bocce skill, though, and won 3 of 4 games against Billy & Ging.

After lunch Ging stayed with Damien to nap in the car, but Billy, Dallas and I went for a walk around Sausalito. What a charming little waterfront town with the houses all built up onto a hill and a nice little commercial area that attracts a lot of tourists.. like us.

Yee Tock Chee Park is a cute little area with great views of Angel Island and San Francisco. The last time that Ging and Billy were in Sausalito they kayaked from the shore to Angel Island. Sounds like something fun to do.

After we passed by not one, but two, Lappert’s Ice Cream shops (started on Kauai) and a Crazy Shirts store (based out of Honolulu), Dallas joked that he must be back home in Hawaii. We, of course, had to stop at Lappert’s. It’s not the same in California as in Hawaii, but they still had Kauai Pie ice cream, so it was fine with me!

We strolled around a bit more and then headed back to meet up with Ging and Damien, who’d just woken up from his carseat nap.

Death by Bocce

Leo's
Leo’s Lunch Room, Wicker Park, Chicago

Holy crap. I almost just got killed by a bocce ball. Deep breaths.

I was walking down .. uh.. across.. east on Division when this yellow bocce ball came flying out of a 2nd or 3rd story window about a half of a foot in front of me. I don’t know if I’d have died had it hit me, but an official bocce ball weighs like over 2 pounds.. and coming out a 2nd or 3rd story window.. I’m sure I’d be maimed or something.

I stopped in my tracks, trying to calm my heart attack, when the ball bounced 2 times (LOUDLY) and rolled under a car. I stayed standing for what seemed like a few minutes but probably was a few seconds.. and then started walking. A quarter block later I just stopped and was like “I ALMOST JUST GOT KILLED BY A BOCCE BALL” and while I was standing there wondering if there’s anything more strange to be killed by and amazed that the people were all still doing their thing oblivious to my near-death experience, a man and two little kids came out of the building that expelled the ball. They walked in circles looking for it, finally seeing it under the car.

1 phone call and 2 blocks later I saw that Leo’s was closed by the Health Dept. today. The last inspection online is from 2003, so I don’t know what the deal is.

But back to the important news. I was almost killed by a bocce ball!