Yosemite Benner

This is a video montage from when my friend Adam and I went to Grant Lake at Yosemite National Park a few weeks back. Enjoy!

A Phillies game and a lot of jeans

The other night, Rhi, Sarah, Steve and I all went to the Phillies/Dodgers game. I was hopeful, because the Phillies were due for a win, and it was the only time I'd get to see them play in person for the rest of the year. As for the other three... well, they were no help at all.

Rhi doesn't know anything about baseball, and when I tried to explain the rules she just said she was bored and wanted me to stop. Steve isn't a particularly big fan of the sport and just clapped for anything that happened on the field. As for Sarah, she was cheering for Drexel University for some reason. So really, I was the only one who felt the pain of the Phillies boring 3-1 loss.

Dodger Dogs are overrated, too. Here's some photos captured with a camera phone.



And because there's nowhere else to put this, here's a funny story. Rhianwen helped Sarah clean out her closet recently, and this is what they found.

That's right: 19 pairs of jeans. 19. Pairs. Of jeans. To be fair, its due to the fact that Sarah never throws clothes away, not that she is a compulsive shopper. It's possible that some of them date back to her undergrad days and others are strictly construction site jeans (Sarah is a geological engineer). But still. Nineteen. It was impressive to see them cover the bed.

Hangin' with the Sargeants

Ah, the Sargeants. If ever a family could make you feel less smart just by carrying on normal dinner conversation, surely this is the brood. They're like the Royal Tenenbaums, in that they're a family of geniuses. Not that they're highly dysfunctional or anything. To the contrary. They function with some functionality to spare, which is partially why Rhianwen and I were overjoyed to drive up to Menlo Park (just south of San Francisco) to hang out with them this past weekend. We knew the Sargeants from back in Philadelphia, as they were a part of the House of God's Light community.

But it turns out that Carol (below, with Kimon) is originally from Silicon Valley, so they're out here for weeks each year. It's like we have a bonus family to visit with.


Here is the happy couple in the kitchen, a place they know well since they have two teenage (and one close to it) boys. Oh, and they also have a daughter.



That's Evangeline. She's the little cutie that the Sargeants were blessed to adopt a few years back when she was just a one year old in China. She's closer to about four now, and she is a smart, fun little girl. I may have been holding that book, but she was the one reading to me. Of course, I should say "reading," as in she just made the story up partly from memory and partly from improvisation skills. But still, it's impressive.




And these are the three guys: Alexi, Ellis and Jadon. (In that order, but not placed in order of age... is that confusing? Tough.) Alexi has already mapped out fantasy worlds associated with many novels, and is also a produced playwright. Ellis is an avowed Phillies fan for life and consumes baseball statistics like you eat toast. Jadon is a bit of a jokester, and he also owned me in ping pong. Which I will get revenge on him for.

You hear me, Jadon? I'm coming for you.

We also walked around Palo Alto, which is a magical place filled with wacky murals and Internet start ups.



It's kind of crazy seeing the place where Facebook is headquartered. In a way, it's like seeing the sausage factory; now that I know Facebook is grounded in reality (and expensive Palo Alto real estate) and not in the collective hearts and minds of post modern Internet addicts, I'm not sure I want to consume the product anymore.

Yup. Just like sausage.

Anyways, here's a family shot of the Sargeants with Rhi and I in Gloria and Tom's beautiful backyard. (For those following along at home, Gloria and Tom are Carol's parents.)


Sorry for the fuzziness. As I say often nowadays, my camera takes gorgeous video footage, but it's crap with stills. Unless you have a tripod.

And finally, because Rhianwen is obsessed with the strangest things, here's a picture of a vacuum.

Rhi's B-Day Hike

We drug Rhianwen's "birthday" celebration out to a "birthweek" celebration this year, and spent the following Saturday hiking to a waterfall in Altadena (just north of Pasadena). We invited a few friends, grabbed some water and sunblock and were on our way.


That's the gang, flanked by DeAnna and Roxanne showing off their guns. I don't look it, but I was incredibly intimidated.

About halfway up to the waterfall, we saw a helicopter flying above us. Apparently, they were medivaccing (is that how you say it?) someone out who was suffering heat stroke. We hope they turned out alright. Here's us with some firemen.


Eventually, we made it up to the waterfall. I (Benner) actually went in and, along with DeAnna, stood under the fall. Apparently it was not caught on camera, however. Sigh.


And, since she hasn't been featured enough so far, here's the beautiful birthday girl herself Rhianwen. Ain't she cute?


Happy Birthday (again) sweetheart!

Yosemite Pics

That's a slide show of pictures taken by my friend Adam while we were camping in Yosemite National Park. Very fun.