Following my big birthday celebration yesterday, it was a little difficult rolling out of bed for an 8AM soccer match. Happily my tweaked hamstring from two weeks ago has healed and I managed to play the entire match without further aggravation, even managing an assist on one of our 4 goals. My team is on a real streak, having won our last 15 matches without surrendering a single goal. With half the season remaining, we are now solidly in first place. I returned home in time to bid farewell to my visiting sister, mother, and sister-in-law and then to spend time teaching my nieces to fly one of my drones. Above is a dronee taken by Sophia before my brother and his family traveled to Olin with Jeanine and I to visit Maya. She gave a tour of the campus leaving all the engineers in the family wishing they could go back to school and her young nieces with a glimpse of what a future in college might look like.

Sixty years ago today I entered the world, the first of four children born to Frank and Angela Calabria in Albany, NY.  A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then. I am happy to report that I have few regrets and many blessings to be thankful for.

Jeanine conspired with family and friends to throw me a surprise party to celebrate the milestone. Misdirection took the form of a visit to the Boston Aquarium with my nieces, Sophia and Rose, and brother, Mark. This to lure me down to the waterfront where a classic sailing schooner, manned by a large contingent of my family and friends was waiting wharf side to collect us for a sunset cruise of the Boston Harbor. Our group of ~35 then walked to the North End where we dined at the L’Osteria Italian restaurant.  Between appetizers and the main course, guests were entertained by a game in which they had to answer various trivia questions about the birthday boy. The highlight of the evening for me was hearing the words offered by my children in celebration of their father.  A more wonderful day I could not have hoped for.

This aerial photo of the field behind our yard revealed an entire patch of fall color on the right side of the frame.  As soon as we get some sun, I plan to investigate more thoroughly.  This is a very exciting discovery and I can hardly wait for some decent weather.

I made it to CCHS in time to catch the end of a women’s varsity soccer match today.  I was hoping to put my new sports-oriented camera body through its paces.  I could not be happier with the results.  For the record, CCHS enjoyed a hard-fought 1-0 win.

Today after work I picked up a used Sony a9 camera body. It is the camera of choice for sports photography and will be part of the kit I take to  Mexico for the Amputee World Cup tournament a month from now.  I got a highly discounted price on a very lightly used copy which looks to be in perfect condition. Tomorrow I plan to give it a real workout.  The Concord Carlisle High School women’s soccer team has a late afternoon match at home. 

Raptors are some of the most photogenic birds of all.  This one flew across the road as I was driving by.  I spotted where it landed, pulled over, and got out my telephoto lens.  I approached slowly and was rewarded for my effort with this nicely framed portrait against a dramatic blue sky.  Regrettably, I did not have time to hang around while it hunted.

Since I was nursing my hamstring yesterday, I decided to photograph the match. The image above is one of a sequence showing my teammate, Frank, dribbling around the keeper and several defenders to score a beautiful goal.  The full set of images can be found here.

For the sixth year in a row, Jeanine participated in the Three Squares New England Ride for Food. This year she raised $10,250 on the 25-mile ride.  Together her team from Open Table collected $31,500.  She was joined by close friend, Karen Metzold, the wife of my high school wrestling partner. Apparently the ride can be very dangerous so participants must wear really big helmets. Either that or the team from Open Table thought it would be fun to create a headpiece with the organizations new logo on it. My tweaked hamstring is healing nicely but I decided to sit out my match this morning to ensure I will be fully recovered for next weekend when we face one of our toughest opponents.  After today’s 8-0 win we are 4-0 on the season.

Last night on the evening news I saw a story about a local family that created a corn maze honoring Tom Brady of the New England Patriots.  It is hard to explain to those who do not live in the Boston area just how seriously people here take their sports. I’d say these photos make the argument better than I can. Located in Bolton, MA, the Schartner Farm is operated by the 4th generation descendants of Julius Schartner who emigrated from Austria in 1902.  For those who do not keep up with the latest vernacular, G.O.A.T. = “Greatest of all Time.” 

As city halls go, the one in Lowell, MA is quite beautiful. Pictured above with the gold-domed Holy Trinity Church in the background and below with the Tsongas Center in the distance.  I made a brief visit to the city this afternoon for a tour of the historic mills that line the Merrimack River. They were equally interesting but not quite as photogenic.

Construction continues on Mass + Main, a project that will add three buildings and 306 apartments to Cambridge’s Central Square. The taller of those buildings will run to 19 stories and 195 feet, placing it among the highest in Cambridge.  The project is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2019.  Soon the building will block the morning sun that falls on the Clover restaurant where I have breakfast most days.  It is a stark reminder that the things we take for granted are rarely permanent.

The remnants of Hurricane Florence have been passing through Massachusetts for the past 36 hours.  Having just reseeded our lawn we are thankful for all the rain.  The ominous skies also contributed to the mood of this image of a bridge over the Sudbury River which I rather like.

Two days ago I secured a reservation for Audi’s first all-electric car, the e-tron, only seconds after preferred customers were allowed to do so. At 12:01 AM this morning, I got my first glimpse of the final design and had a chance to review specifications before entering my order configuration.  I have decided on everything except the color which will probably be one of the two above. I have waited patiently for this day ever since I rejected delivery of a Tesla Model X over 2 years ago.  That saga is recounted here.  The e-tron is a proper all-electric SUV crossover with enough range (~250 miles) to eliminate the need for a traditional gas-powered car, a big increase compared to the 81-mile range of my BMW i3.  While it has been fine for commuting to Boston, I have to trade cars with Jeanine anytime I need to travel further. Delivery is expected within 6 months and possibly sooner given my position at the top of the reservation list.

Today’s photo is courtesy of Kyle who documented his work in the kitchen where he prepared meals for the coming week.  His mother deserves all the credit for teaching her children how to cook and appreciate healthy food.  Sadly, her husband has not benefited from equal measures of instruction and coaching.  It should also be noted that she still accuses him of creating the false impression that he was an accomplished cook during their courtship.  This by virtue of the fact that he owned a mushroom brush and prepared homemade lasagna for one of their early dates.