There are currently six Wienermobiles in existence, all of which are actively used for promotional purposes across the United States. Today, while driving to lunch with Jeanine, we encountered one in the wild. These iconic hot dog-shaped vehicles are part of a marketing campaign by Oscar Mayer and are driven by a select group of college graduates known as “Hotdoggers”. The Wienermobile fleet has a rich history, with the first model introduced in 1936. Since then, the fleet has seen various iterations and upgrades, but the current lineup consists of six vehicles that tour the country year-round, often appearing at events and parades.

The boys joined us this evening to watch the finals of the inaugural Women’s Amputee Soccer World Cup. Kyle arrived with dinner in hand, a godsend since Jeanine was otherwise occupied, and told me I was on my own for food. The finals were between the USA and the host nation, Columbia. The match ended in a 1:1 tie and was decided by a one-goal difference in the penalty kick shootout, with Columbia the victor. Although it was a disappointing result for the Americans, the tournament represents a major milestone in the sport of Amputee Soccer.

My own soccer career may have come to an end this morning. During our final match of the season before the playoffs, I suffered a fairly severe hamstring injury. For some time now, I have been wondering how many more seasons I have in me (or rather, how many more miles I can put on my decrepit knees), and today’s injury may be the signal that it is time to hang up my cleats. Time will tell.

Postscript: We won our match 2:0, and I played 70 minutes as a striker. My injury happened after I intercepted a clearance and had a good opportunity to score.

Jeanine and I enjoyed a plant-shopping outing today. We purchased four small troughs that fit neatly on the window sill over the kitchen sink. I filled one with succulents, and Jeanine filled the other three with herbs and lovely little plants. It was a small effort with a massive joy dividend.

One of my soccer teammates is a season ticket holder for the New England Revolution. He made me aware of a recent article in the organization’s “From The Pitch” newsletter that features Nicolai and amputee soccer. I look forward to the day when Nico makes me aware of such media coverage rather than having to learn about it from friends after the fact.

Conantum, our neighborhood, includes common land shared by all residents. It includes our community gardens, a ball field, and a pollinator garden. It is pictured above in the late afternoon sun. I was on my way to the post office when I stopped for this photo. Something about the play of light, color, and composition appealed to me.

Jeanine and I visited a bonsai nursery today. Few things bring me a greater sense of peace and serenity than looking at these living works of art. I am increasingly tempted to acquire one of these trees, but I need to learn more about their care and maintenance before forking over between $2,000 – $4,000 for one that I really like. As a placeholder, I purchased this Gold Mop Threadleaf Cypress from the discount table of our local nursery for $12. I gave it an initial trimming of branches and roots and installed it in a pot we had lying around. I am not sure it will survive but I found the stress leaving my body as I completed the project.

The kids and Jeanine all voted today. I voted early 2 weeks ago. I am pleased that the entire family did their civic duty. Nothing to do now but sit back and wait nervously. To distract myself, I completed the waterproofing around the base of my shop door, something I discovered that our builder failed to do. I used seven lifts of epoxy topped with an outdoor caulk. The epoxy is thin enough to penetrate deep into crevices but is time-consuming to mix and apply; each layer took about 20 minutes and kept me busy for most of the morning. Rather than stressing over the election results, I spent the remainder of the day listening to music. I discovered several new artist that appealed to me including this pair of beat boxers.

Concord 250 celebration to be held on April 19, 2025, commemorates the semiquincentennial, or 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, which began here in Concord and Lexington. Jeanine has volunteered to help with the planning and is working with a team to bring food trucks to the event. This morning, she asked me to take an aerial photo of the downtown parking lot, which will be transformed into a food court with food trucks (orange), food trailers (green), food tents (pink), portable toilets (cyan), and large tents over centrally located picnic tables. I added the graphics per her guidance, and she will use the image for an upcoming presentation. The plan will likely go through several iterations before a final layout is selected.

Jeanine is in charge of food truck selection for the upcoming Concord 250th Celebration. Today, she drove with a fellow committee member to Princeton, MA for the Fall Food Truck Fest to conduct research. She returned with many new connections and a better sense of the logistics involved. She also informed me that she would not be having dinner tonight due to the extent of her research.

This morning, my soccer team was out for revenge against Lexington, the only team that has handed us a loss in the last two years. We emerged victorious 1:0 after they gave up an own goal towards the end of the game, making us the Division Champions for the 13th season in a row. I played in a three-man rotation at the right-wing midfield position. That translates to 30 minutes of playing time in a 90-minute match. Under other circumstances, I would have been disappointed, but today, I was happy for the limited action. Let’s just say that I didn’t get a lot of exercise on our recent southern road trip while being fed almost constantly by each family member we visited. Even so, I managed a powerful shot on goal from the top of the 18 yard box that would have slipped under the bar except for a valiant hand deflection by the goalie. It was possibly the best shot on frame for our team.

When we returned from our road trip last night, it was already dark, and it was challenging to navigate the driveway because it was entirely covered in leaves. While it was wonderful to be back home, it was depressing to see that almost all the leaves are down now. After clearing the driveway, Jeanine helped me install snow sticks so that we are ready for winter. I am sad that autumn is coming to an end, but I am thankful for what has probably been the most spectacular fall ever.

As much as we enjoyed our road trip, Jeanine and I were ready to sleep in our own bed. We decided to complete our ~3,000-mile journey with a 14-hour push for home. We stopped for breakfast and a short hike at the Big Meadows Lodge in the Shenandoah National Park but otherwise just kept heading north. Although the foliage was past peak, even the muted colors created a lovely natural quilt to cover the rolling mountains.

We continued our northward journey today, traveling again along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Although not as intense as the peak color we had last week, the foliage was still quite dramatic. Occasionally, we encountered showers of falling leaves and the distinctive sound of them crunching under the weight of our tires. We started the day at the Rusty Rooster just outside of Mt Airy for an amazing breakfast (not to be missed on future travel to the area). We stopped throughout the day for photos including the one above of Mabry Mill, the most photographed location along the parkway, and for good reason. As the sun was setting, we turned our attention to lodging and dinner. After a few false starts we found our way to the Zen Suites at the White Lotus Eco Spa. When we arrived we found the entire facility vacant. Absent the confirmation e-mail we were expecting we had no way to gain entry to our suite. We decided to let ourselves into the kitchen and dining hall area where we enjoyed an authentic and delicious Salvadoran dinner that we had picked up in town. After much investigation, I discovered the confirmation e-mail in my gmail account and we used the code to finally gain access to our room.

The 400-year-old Angel Oak Tree measures 65 feet tall and its trunk is 31.5 feet in circumference. It is the largest east of the Mississippi and is magnificently beautiful. I visited the site this morning while Jeanine remained at the hotel to conduct a Zoom call for the consulting project she is currently leading.

My next stop was a brief visit to the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. I could have spent the entire day there, but I had to return to the hotel to collect Jeanine. We started heading north at noon, but not before securing a pulled pork and chopped brisket grilled cheese sandwich for the road.

Jeanine and I arrived in the historic downtown district of Charleston early this morning. After a few hours of exploring on our own, we joined a walking tour, which really enhanced our understanding of the history and significance of the area.

The French Huguenot Church was of particular interest to Jeanine.

Jeanine chose to explore the International African American Museum while I chose the Charleston Museum where I encountered a replica of the U.S. Civil War submarine HL Hunley. For those who do not know, I am obsessed with all things submarine. On the evening of February 17, 1864, her crew of 8 rammed the Federal blockading vessel, Housatonic, with a spar-mounted torpedo. It was the first submarine to ever sink an enemy vessel. Unfortunately, it never returned to port and its crew including Horace Hunley were lost at sea.

I used my drone to fly to Fort Sumter from Sullivan’s Island and get a full-profile view of the USS Yorktown. We ended the day having ice cream in place of dinner.