Thanksgiving 2018

It is that time of year for me to say Thanks! to everyone who made 2018 special for me. It was a year of more adventure. I was able to reconnect with my Austrian pen pals, the Bo sisters. To the left is Isabella Bo who spent a couple days showing me around Austria. I also was able to tour the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. I spent 17 days in Europe at Christmas time and it was my first time in Paris where the Eiffel Tower glows at night and the city is full of art like the "Two Fantastic Persons"

Thankful that I visited Luxembourg City where Quirinus Chapel, one of the world's most famous churches, is built into the side of a mountain. It was my first trip to Luxembourg City, a beautiful place where ancient fortresses overlook a beautiful city. Then I visited my favorite European City, Prague, where I saw the Dancing House and the Victims of Communism Memorial. Thankful, too, I got to see Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin. My friend, Isabella and her friend, Evelyn, took me to a ski resort for lunch and to see the view in Lower Austria Later that day we went to Mariazell and Isabella took me to Melk Abbey the following day. I'm thankful to visit the most interesting city I've been to, Amsterdam, it is a beautiful city full of canals with entertainers and sculptures throughout the city. I'm thankful to have taken more baseball trips, one took me to Yankee Stadium where C.C. Sabathia was pitching. He appears in another of my Thanksgiving pages.

Baseball trips took me to Clinton, Iowa along the Mississippi River to see the Clinton Lumber Kings play. I also got to meet Cannonball Charlie and mascot DownTown of the York (PA) Revolution. Traveling to all these parks got my picture in Ballpark2Ballpark's minor league coffee table book. I also visited Peoria, Illinois where the Chiefs play and Burlington, Iowa, home of the Burlington Bees.

     Sadly, my good friend from
my Tampa days, Richard Alday,
passed away at 58, much too young.
     Once again, it was great that
the Indians won the American 
League Central Division.  
     Unfortunately, they lost to 
Houston in the ALDS.
     Thankful for my job at Akron
Rubber Ducks games for a 
scouting service even though
I worked some really cold days.
     My alter ego, the world
famous Roaming Hooters T-Shirt, is
thankful for the opportunity to 
get back to Prague where I had
Christmas dinner at the Prague
Hooters and posed with my
server at their second Hooters.
     Last, but not least, I spent my
66th birthday where I play 
basketball with cool people like
Chris and the Dragonfly and Phil
peeping over us.