Occidental Soccer

Briefly stopped by LA to catch the Men's Oxy Soccer Team play on Saturday night with my parents. Game time meant I missed out on seeing USC pull out a late victory over OSU (I stopped watching just as they started the game winning drive) but I'm grateful that we won that game and that I saw Oxy win theirs as well

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If you ask me, #14 looks like he's just taking a break on the soccer field.

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90 minutes, 2 goals and a bum ankle later, Deryck still has a smile on his face.

LA is Burning

Well, it was hot and smokey when I dropped by for a visit a couple weekends ago so I think the title is apt.

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Might be hard to see, but that reads 116 degrees F! Actually, this was in Gilroy on the way down to LA. Not a particularly encouraging start to the drive.

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New Zealand ice cream is available in the US! Sure, it isn't Tip Top Brand but it's good to see Hokey Pokey available. Grant & I each bought a pint from the Albertsons near his apartment before we settled down to play Resident Evil 5.

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Denver Omelette and hashbrowns from Uncle Bill's Pancake house in Manhattan Beach. Kurt had a flight to catch so Darren & I caught an "early" breakfast with him. Food was pretty decent (actually, Kurt's french toast was pretty tasty) but this place certainly was no Boots & Kimo. Regardless, it was good seeing most of my old roommates in the same weekend.

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Downtown LA as seen from the 110 freeway. That big mushroom cloud looking thing is the smoke emanating from the Angeles National Forest burning. Isn't this place lovely? I saw this sight on my way to have dinner w/Bro, Darren, Priscilla, Ryan, Josh & Co.

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And this is what was causing all that smoke. A bit blurry, but the best my camera could do from a distance. We can't all have a front row seat to the fire like Traci...

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As much as I dislike this city for all that is wrong with it, I find myself amazed by it every now and then. Here's the view from the Griffith Observatory on a (relatively) clear night (before the long drive back north). I'll definitely have to come back here to check out the Observatory (and view again) as this time 'round, I arrived just as it was closing.

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Thanks to everyone who I was able to meet up with and for those who housed me over the two brief nights I dropped by. Apologies for those I missed. I hope I'll see you all again not too long from now. Cheers!